Vigilante Angel
by TheShadowPanther
Summary: COMPLETE! Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? RR!
1. Prologue

**Vigilante Angel:** Prologue

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen?

Disclaimer: Don't own it, whether it's Dragonball Z or anything else you recognize.

A/n: Revised March 27th 2007 for showcase on FanLib (dot) com. Also, to warn you, this chapter is _exactly_ like that episode where Goku participates in that Otherworld Tournament in Upper Heaven. After this, the chapters are going to be RADICALLY different, so don't give up on this one!

:-:-:-:

_Thinking/Telepathy_

:-:-:-:

It was over.

Gohan slumped mid-air above a huge crater. Cell was beaten, and his father was gone. It was his fault that his father was dead. Gohan killed him.

Gohan was so lost in these thoughts, and so exhausted, that the weak ki beam Cell had left behind came up on him unnoticed. It was only when Gohan heard a shout from Piccolo that he looked up, too late and too weak to defend himself. The blast roared past Gohan, obliterating his body and dropping the dusty remains into the breeze that had just sprung up. Cell's final revenge, his beam, soared away to blow up on one of the mountains.

:-:-:-:

Piccolo had shouted for Gohan to watch out, and had watched on in horror as the beam simply destroyed his former student and best friend. Now he floated in air above the crater Gohan and Cell had made with their double Kamehamehas.

He looked desperately for any sign that Gohan was alive, but his head knew, as well as his heart, that Gohan was dead as dead could be. In shock, Piccolo dully watched Gohan's ashes fly before the wind to some other place more desirable as a final resting place than the fighting ground they were on.

Krillin came up and floated by Piccolo, silently giving the tall green Namekian some support. Vegeta flew by too, but he didn't stay as long as Krillin did. Vegeta went over to Mirai Trunks' body and grieved in his own way there, and Android 18 got up holding her head. Krillin spotted her and rather hesitantly went to help her.

Piccolo didn't know how much time had gone by before he finally moved, but judging from the hopeful faces of the shouting journalists below, it was quite some time. A big Afro-ed man was hovering by them, a slightly apprehensive look on his face. As Piccolo slowly floated nearer, the apprehensive look increased, until the baka was almost hiding behind the photographer with his broken camera.

Finally, Piccolo was just within normal hearing range to them. He asked them in a gruff voice, "Yeah? What do you want?"

The blonde dude with the microphone who was the announcer visibly gulped. "Uh, do you mind telling us who that boy was? The one that defeated Cell?"

Piccolo snorted. "I'll tell you his name. It's the Gold Saiyan," naming Gohan's new alter-identity. The Afro man's face fell at this. Now he, Hercule Satan, wasn't going to get the chance to become famous. Oh well, there were always the World Marital Arts Tournaments.

Piccolo, tired of this already, flew away, stirring up a dust storm in the people's faces. The announcer and the photographer weren't fazed, they were instead busily chattering about the marvelous boy who had defeated Cell with his light stuff. They didn't seem to realize that their hero was dead, that he had been killed too. Piccolo snorted again from his perch on the rock monolith above them, and turned away. The cape swirled around and behind his form as he lifted up into the sky to go to the Lookout.

:-:-:-:

On the Lookout, everyone was settled. The Dragonballs had been collected, and the Eternal Dragon Shenron summoned. The first wish had been granted, and everyone from Chichi to Mirai Trunks had been revived. Now they were going to wish Son Goku and Son Gohan back with the second wish.

Dende looked around, seeing that everyone was settled, and raised his arms for the next wish. He shouted, "I wish for Son Goku and Son Gohan—"

_Hey! Don't we get a say in this?_ Goku's bright and cheerful voice rang in everyone's heads.

Everyone jerked. "Goku?"

_Hi guys! Guess what? Gohan and I, we thought about staying here in Otherworld instead of coming back. _

Stunned silence followed this proposition, then everyone broke out, "Why Goku? Why Gohan?"

A thud marked the question everyone was asking, and everyone looked around to see Chichi spread-eagled on the ground in a dead faint.

A chuckle from an eleven-year-old voice brought everyone's attention back to Shenron. Gohan asked, _Did my mom just faint?_

"Yes, brat, she did." Surprisingly enough, that came from Vegeta.

A slight chuckle could be heard. Everyone sweatdropped, then returned to asking Goku why they wouldn't come back.

_Well, like Dende said, these Dragonballs can't resurrect someone who had already died, right Dende? _

Everyone, minus Chichi, threw dirty looks at the new God. Dende cringed, but managed to reply, "Yes Goku, that's right."

_Not only that, but people keep coming to Earth just because of me. Fighting in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with my son had made me realize that I don't really know Gohan, so that's why he's not coming back either. But don't worry, we'll come to visit. Oh, bye guys, we gotta go. See ya! _

"Goku!" Krillin cried out.

But Goku and Gohan were gone, and Shenron was getting impatient. Finally Krillin piped up with a wish to turn Androids 17 & 18 into normal humans. Shenron responded that that wasn't possible. So Krillin asked that the bombs be removed from inside of the twin Androids. That Shenron granted.

The Dragonballs scattered for the first time since Dende made them. Everyone returned to their respective places, with Chichi staying overnight due to her unconsciousness. She stayed even longer than expected, for she fainted again when Piccolo and Dende told her that Gohan and Goku had refused to come back: They were still dead.

But the next thing that woke Chichi up was a dull ache in her stomach. She gasped and sat up in her bed on Mt. Paoz. Not noticing her surroundings, Chichi groped for an old testing gadget she had used when she was carrying Gohan. She did the necessary steps and waited impatiently for the results. When they came, she sank into a chair trembling with joy and sadness and also a mental groan.

Chichi was going to have another baby. She was going to have to go through another nine months of carrying a demi-Saiyan again. And look how tough Gohan had been! Gohan…

Chichi sighed, Depression settling its blanket around her. She had not only lost Goku this time, but her baby as well… Life wasn't fair. Ah well, she'd just have to make sure that this next one didn't fight at all. Still depressed, Chichi hauled herself out of the chair and to the phone to call Bulma.

:-:-:-:

Gohan looked around. It was interesting, if overwhelmingly so, here in Other World. He stood beside his father, not too far, but not too close either. His dad was talking to a plump blue catfish sort of person, who he heard addressed as King Kaioo, or North Kaioo. North Kaioo had a halo like Gohan and his dad, and he wore a black body length tunic with a symbol over his heart. Antennae sprung out of his head, and twitched continually. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes, much like Master Roshi. The North Kaioo seemed like a very likable sort, if you cared for his corny jokes.

North Kaio was introduced to Gohan, and then the whole group set off to see the Grand Kaio. Other dead fighters greeted North Kaio as they passed; all looked curiously at the spiky black haired red gi garbed man and the equally spiky black haired purple gi attired boy who dutifully followed the God of the Northern Quadrant.

At the end of the road the trio had stepped on, there loomed a palace. North Kaio spotted a vintage car and practically zoomed to it. He started admiring it and complaining that the Grand Kaio always had something the North Kaio didn't have.

Goku and Gohan watched King Kaio's odd behavior. Gohan then turned to Goku and asked his father if there was more than two Kaios. Goku explained to Gohan all about the Four Kaios, the Grand Kaio, and the mysterious Kaio that was superior to all of the above (called the Supreme Kaio). The father/son duo got to meet the West Kaio and Pikkon, the West's prizefighter. They met the odd combination that was the Grand Kaio, and Gohan's shyness was instantly put to ease when the Grand Kaio simply treated him like another being.

Then the Grand Kaio talked to Pikkon. "Ah, Pikkon, glad you're here for your task on time. There's a problem over in HFIL. Some of its residents are threatening to escape. I think you'd better check it out."

Pikkon bowed. He blasted off into the yellow sky. Goku and Gohan looked after him, at each other, and asked North, "King Kaio, what's HFIL?"

"Home for Infinite Losers, or Hell. It's where Frieza and Cell are."

"WHAT?! Why didn't you say so?!" Goku and Gohan turned Super Saiyan and spun off into the air. Gohan was called back by the North Kaio, though.

"Gohan! You'd better stay here! I have a different job for you then chasing old enemies, if you're interested!"

"Can it wait? I want to beat up Cell!"

"Actually it can, but your father will be all right! Now come back here!"

Casting anxious glances over his shoulder, Gohan powered down and slowly drifted back to Other World. (Get it? Drifted back to Earth, drifted back to Other World? I seriously need to brush up my puns.)

"Thank you Gohan." North said. Gohan nodded. His attention was still directed towards the area where his father and that fighter Pikkon had gone. That was going to change.

North Kaio started speaking. "Gohan, how would you like to be a guardian angel?"

Gohan snapped his head to North, seriously startled. He stammered, "A g-guardian angel? What for?"

North grinned. "Well, your mother is going to have another baby, and I know that you assume that you killed your father. You didn't, by the way, but that's beside the point right now. The point is, you could make up for that by being your sibling's guardian angel. Just until he or she grows up, anyway."

Gohan stared at the North Guardian, thinking hard. _Mom's going to have another baby? And it's my fault that my dad is dead, too! Jeez, what have I done to be alive, well, dead, and still with my body? I should be roasting in hell right now for what I've done to Dad! And now the new baby won't have a dad because of me! Gee whiz! _His thoughts of self-hate were interrupted by North's sharp reprimand.

"I told you already, Gohan, it isn't your fault your father died! He sacrificed himself so that you could live, and that's that! Now get over it! It doesn't matter that you didn't kill Cell when you had the chance, it's over! All right?"

Grand Kaio butted in with a comment of his own. "Northie's right. The past is the past is the past. Can't do anything to change it, so you might as well stop dwelling in it and move on." The combination of North's cutting voice and the Grand's dry gangster accent voice dissolved some of the guilt and self-loathing Gohan was feeling, but it would take some time for Gohan to get rid of it all. But now the case was closed.

Gohan thought for a moment about North's proposal, then nodded firmly, accepting the commitment. He didn't know what he was getting himself into, especially in the later years, when his younger sibling started moving around.

North clapped his hands, the decision made. He told Gohan that "a pass would be made so that Gohan could always come in and out of Other World for anytime, any reason, anywhere, and for any period of time". It was rare for a dead fighter in the upper parts of Heaven to be a guardian angel, North added, and this should be kept quiet about as a result.

"The pass should only be shown to King Yemma, Baba the Fortune Teller, or King Yemma's ogres. Otherwise, it has to be tucked into your gi. You'll have to learn to fight with it around your neck, though. I suggest you start practicing as soon as you get it."

Gohan nodded. He looked up as he sensed his father's and Pikkon's kis come back from HFIL. They landed and walked to their separate Kaios. This chapter probably would have ended here, were it not for the fact (in both the episodes and this fic) that the other two King Kaios came up and tortured poor Northie about his being dead.

East Kaio, who was the only female, put in another annoyance to North by saying, "As this has been 300 years since we last were together in one place, let's have a tournament!"

Gohan could see why it had been 300 years since all four King Kaios had last been together. It was obvious that North definitely did not like West, East and South, and that they didn't really like North in turn. But they somehow tolerated each other, and had their little competitions restricted to instead having their fighters claw at each other. The fighters from each Quadrant eagerly took up the challenge too. As the news of the tournament was spread around, fighters could be seen training harder than ever.

The four King Kaios departed. North led Goku and Gohan to a building in his "area" of Upper Heaven, where numerous fighters were collected. Gohan and Goku listened politely to North as he pointed out Olibu, who was a legend in the Son's own planet Earth, and other fighters who had died to save their planet. North then introduced Goku as "the fighter who had beat Frieza", and Gohan as "the fighter who beat Cell, and son of Goku". Gohan blushed a bit when he heard the 'fighter who beat Cell' bit, but he held himself upright as around him exclamations were made over the young demi-Saiyan.

Olibu said something to Goku. "Goku, Gohan, welcome to the North Quadrant. Are you skilled in your training?"

Goku grinned. "Well, actually, Gohan's stronger than I am. I have had more experience in fighting, but once Gohan masters his new level, he'll be able to beat me any day!"

Gohan blushed again, redder this time. He protested, "Dad! I'll never be able to beat you."

Goku smiled at his son. "Sure you will Gohan! You just need a bit of training!"

Gohan hung his head as chuckles were heard by the crowd of fighters before them. The dog-like fighter the North Kaio had pointed out earlier commented, "Well, Gohan, you certainly will get that training here."

More laughter was heard as Gohan ruefully nodded his head.

East Kaio drove by on her motor scooter. She spotted the twosome of Goku and Gohan, and decided to test them, make sure they were worthy enough for the tournament. She scooted up to North Kaio. North saw East out of the corner of his eye, and asked her what she wanted.

East sniffed and said, "I wish to test your new fighters to see that they are suitable for the tournament and for Upper Heaven."

North snorted. He probably would have turned her away had it not been for Grand Kaio walking by. He piped up in his gangster accent, "Why not? I'll be able to make measurements of their power before the tourney."

And so the three Kaios went into the building behind them. The building turned out to be a separate wing of the Grand's Palace. The fighters followed, and pretty soon the whole group found themselves in a very strange room.

The Grand Kaio strutted in, saying over his shoulder, "Well, what do you think? I had guys up here for three weeks doing the paint job."

No one made any comment. The background was black, and with stars peppered all over it. There were planets and archways and other random things. This room looked more like something suitable for an astronomist's observatory, only it was missing a gigantic telescope and flashing, beeping computers.

After everyone stared for a while, East Kaio snapped to and briskly turned to Goku and Gohan. "So, you two. We're going to have a race to judge you on your speed. If you can beat me, you'll pass my standards and I'll let you compete in the tournament."

Goku and Gohan exchanged glances, then shrugged. They hunched down into a starting pose, with East Kaio settling onto her motor scooter. The Grand Kaio raised his bandana, dropped it, and the race started.

First off, East Kaio was in the lead. Then Goku lined up with her on one side, Gohan filling the gap on the other side. East frowned and went into hyper-speed mode, leaving the male folk in the dust. They frowned, and phased in and out to catch up with East Kaio. Gohan then powered up a bit, not too much, and pulled ahead of the female Kaio. East Kaio scowled at the kid, and tried vainly to speed up. No can do. Goku was still by her side, but was apparently making no attempt to go faster, unlike his son.

And that was the way the race ran, with Gohan in the lead, East Kaio second, and Goku lagging behind slightly. But towards the end, at one of the archways, Goku sped up and forced the East Kaio to drop into third place. However, he had waited too long to try and catch Gohan; his son had victory in his sights, and Gohan wasn't about to let that go.

They flashed through the archway: Gohan and Goku neck for neck, and East Kaio closing up on their tails with a last kick into light-speed gear. But it was clear that the East Kaio had been beaten. Now the question remained, who won? Goku, or Gohan? It was up to the Grand Kaio to decide. Yet, the father/son duo smiled at each other and told the Grand Kaio that they didn't care who was the faster. They just cared that they had passed East Kaio's test to qualify for the tournament. Or had they?

Everyone looked at the East Kaio. She huffed and puffed, but the North Kaio managed to extract from her the necessary words that allowed Goku and Gohan to participate in the tournament, if they wished.

Father and son stood by and watched the two King Kaios bicker with each other, and smiled.

Pikkon stared at the kid before him. It was the finals of the tournament, and he couldn't believe that a kid, however prodigious and powerful he may be, was the one to fight against him the final round. The kid stared back, matching his wits and non-eye blinking-ness (Is that even a word? Pikkon wondered. No of course not, but it would do) with Pikkon's, with neither winning at the moment. At least until the gong started.

Gohan, having seen the Grand Kaio out of his eye, was prepared for the _blong!_ that followed, but Pikkon was jolted out of his unblinking state, therefore losing the staring contest. Gohan smirked evilly, making Vegeta proud, before he launched into a whirling and swirling attack onto Pikkon. Pikkon, not really understanding his opponent's power, was hard put to keep up with Gohan's speed and agility, which is saying something. Pikkon ain't the top fighter in the dead West Quadrant for nuttin', ya know.

:-:-:-:

Pikkon finally managed to get in a blow, interrupting Gohan's flow. Panting, the taller fighter straightened up. He didn't wait for the kid to get up, but swooshed down upon the young demi-Saiyan. He figured on going for the jugular, finishing off this child prodigy fighter before the fight got too out of hand. He would have succeeded too, had it not been for a certain technique we fans of DBZ like to call "phasing".

Gohan sensed his opponent coming, and quickly phased out. Pikkon was left to crash his fist into the cement were Gohan had lain seconds earlier. The cement cracked, and Pikkon was left to wonder were the heck the young fighter had gone.

A yell from above hailed Pikkon. He looked up, only to get a face full of two fists. That knocked Pikkon's turban off, deciding the matter for Pikkon. Pikkon stepped away from Gohan. He took off his jacket, and threw it aside. Gohan picked up the turban, surprised at the weight. Pikkon smirked.

But Pikkon was unpleasantly surprised when Gohan smiled and threw the turban away without any real difficulty. The demi-Saiyan slid back into a fighting stance, remarking off-handedly, "My sensei Piccolo wears weighted clothing. I think you should meet him sometime, I'm sure you two would get along. Now are you going to fight me for real or not?"

Gohan's Saiyan side was taking over obviously. He was getting almost as arrogant as Vegeta in a fight. Gohan snorted at himself, and got ready. Pikkon came on like a bullet. No, faster. Gohan slid sideways, unobtrusively pulling his arm back to counter punch the guy as he came on.

Pikkon got in a full kata on Gohan's upraised arm before he was sucker punched. He fell back and wiped blood off his face. He was breathing heavily, as was Gohan, and both were enjoying this fight.

Gohan didn't know what came over him. He was just enjoying this fight in front of thousands of people, like his dad. It did occur to him that the fight with Cell had changed him, ever since his talk with Android 16's head. But the fact remained that he was starting to like to fight, and was not shy to show off his power.

(The rest of the fight goes on like in Goku's fight, only with the episode ending differently.)

Gohan pushed a blonde spike out of his eye. Pikkon was going to use his Thunder Flash Attack again, and he was starting to figure out a pattern. Now if only he could find a break to go Super Saiyan Two… Aha!

Pikkon's ki was skyrocketing again. Gohan used this opportunity to go Super Two, oblivious to the gasping stares of the audience. His sights were on Pikkon and had been since the beginning of the fight, and would continue to be until the end of the fight.

Gohan's hair turned longer and more bronze than gold. The spikes stood up stiffer in the air than in the first SS mode. His eyes turned from green to turquoise, and retained the hard look of determination they had held since the beginning. Pikkon finished his power up, and stared down the young prodigy Saiyan fighter. Gohan matched wits again with another smirk. He knew that he could take this fighter, given enough time and injuries.

Gohan narrowed his eyes as Pikkon went through the ritual of the Thunder Flash Attack. _C'mon Pikkon, fire it…fire it…ah… _

Pikkon fired the fire attack, to be met with a quickly formed Kamehameha Wave. The Kamehameha was strong enough to nullify Pikkon's attack, to the shock of the green fighter. But there was no time to think about that; Gohan was on the offense again.

Again Gohan was moving too fast for Pikkon to see, until a punch under his chin quickly put the lie to the thought that Gohan was in the air. The punch was followed by a kick, and another punch, driving Pikkon to the edge. Gohan kick-feinted at Pikkon's shins, then drove home a roundhouse that knocked Pikkon's head back, back, back, back out of the ring. Pikkon's body followed his head, and _SPLAT!_ Pikkon was spread-eagled on the ground, and out of the fight.

Gohan peered over the edge at Pikkon. Pikkon's eyes were closed, and he was breathing hard. The tatters on Pikkon's clothes were testament to Gohan's extreme speed, agility, and sometimes strength. They also were affirmative to Gohan's ki control: there were a lot of singes and burns were Gohan had hit Pikkon with a ki ball.

However, Gohan's gi was a lot worse. I will leave it to you to imagine Gohan, bloody and bruised, panting and sweating, with his gi torn in so many places.

"Hey Pikkon. Are you all right?"

Pikkon's eyes opened into Gohan's black-eyed gaze. He smiled lightly. He slowly got up, brushed off his pants, plucked at his shirt, and looked at Gohan.

"Yeah. I'm all right kid. Thanks for your concern. Care to spar again sometime?"

Gohan grinned. "Sure, why not? It'll be a friendly competition." Gohan was rewarded by another light smile from Pikkon, before the latter turned and walked away.

Goku walked up to Gohan and put his hand on his son's shoulder. Gohan looked up at his dad.

Goku said, "Hey son. You did really well today. I'm proud of you. Just think, with more training, you'll be able to beat me hands down!"

Gohan shook his head. "Not that again, Dad." Shaking his head, Gohan continued to watch Pikkon walk away. He had a feeling that his afterlife in the Otherworld was going to be great.

:-:-:-:

Suggested Viewing: Episodes 183 and 184 for Goku's Otherworld Tournament performance.


	2. Chapter the First: Redemption

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the First

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Must I do this _again_? *Sighs* Don't own it. 

A/n: Well, we're on a roll here! Welcome to the first chapter installment of "Vigilante Angel". Thanx to everyone for the reviews! 5 already! Now, this chapter will be MUCH shorter than the last one. That's because this chapter is just basically the first time Gohan does something for Goten as guardian angel and big brother. I tell you, I really like Gohan being guardian angel to his brother. I have such plans! *Rubs hands together like evil mad scientist* Well, I'm jabbering, so on with the first chapter!

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

~*~

Gohan watched his mother set down her wiggling bundle of cloth and chubby baby in a crib. As soon as Chichi let go, the baby within fought free of the binding cloth restrictions. 

Chichi smiled fondly at her second son of two weeks. Sighing, she looked up out of the nearby window. She appeared to Gohan like she was looking to the skies; like she was lamenting the refusals to return not only from Goku but also from Gohan as well. Gohan had to resist the urge to hug his mother. 

North Kai had warned Gohan not to interact with any of the Z-senshi unless he explained to Piccolo and Dende what was going on. Gohan didn't exactly want to do that yet. He didn't want to have to deal with the dreaded reactions of his ex-mentor Piccolo and his friend Dende. So for now he kept still. 

Chichi sighed again and turned to leave the room. On her way she thought she glimpsed wide bright black eyes and a flash of purple gi. But as she paused, she didn't see any more sights of her first son. Shaking her head, Gohan's mother finally exited the room. 

Gohan expelled his breath and carefully crawled out from under the crib. He was glad he hadn't been found. Straightening up, Gohan checked on his little sibling. The baby was a boy. Hair already covered what Gohan could see of the head. Presently, his brother's eyes were closed, and his tiny little hands were playing around with a furry appendage. Other than that, Gohan's younger brother and guardian angel ward had on an ordinary baby boy's outfit, and was sleeping peacefully. But that was soon to vary. 

Gohan continued observing his little brother, frowning worriedly when the baby showed signs of a nightmare. The baby began to thrash about, not able to wake up and call for his mother. Gohan frowned again. 

He reached out and touched his brother on the cheek. That seemed to calm him down for a bit, but not for long. Gohan's brother whimpered again after a while. That galvanized Gohan into action. 

Spreading his conscious, Gohan touched his mother's sleeping mind and slipped quietly into her dreams. 

~*~

Chichi had just barely gone to sleep when memories of Goku and Gohan pounced on her. She smiled at most of them and cried at other. But the most surprising thing to come in her dreams wasn't a memory. 

Gohan appeared again. He was in his purple gi, blue wristbands, and fighting boots she had last seen him. He wore a thong and a weird symbol pendant tied around his neck, and a halo circling the air above his head. His hair was a bit longer, Chichi noted with distaste, but everything else was the same. 

Gohan smiled at his mother. Chichi wanted to rush to him to hug him, but something held her back. She forgot that damning encumbrance as Gohan spoke. 

"Hi Mom. Listen, I think something's up with my little brother. He might be having a nightmare." 

Chichi's face contorted with horror. Gohan disappeared again, forcing Chichi to wake up. She flung herself out of bed and actually flew into her second baby's room. 

Chichi reached into the baby crib and attempted to soothe him. She had considerably more luck than Gohan had had, but then the baby woke up and whimpered again. 

Chichi picked her son up and murmured, "There, there, Goten, it's all right. It's just your first nightmare." She crooned along in that vein. But it was only as Goten happened to look up over his mother's shoulder at Gohan smiling down at him that Goten allowed himself to drift back off to sleep. 

~*~

Gohan stood over his baby brother's crib again. So Goten was his name. It fit him. But Gohan was puzzled as to why Goten had gone to sleep only when he had seen Gohan. Sure, Gohan was his big brother, but Goten didn't know that. And, even if Goten did know that, it still wasn't a reason to put off his mother's efforts for so long. Shrugging, Gohan just left the poser sail on the air. 

He glanced at Goten again, assuring himself the baby was asleep, and left the house for the Lookout. He was going to pay a little visit to two certain Namekians and a Mr. Popo. 

Gohan, had he thought over the events of the past two weeks, would have found the answer lurking in there. For he had been the one person Goten had seen first after birth after his mother. A bond had formed between the two brothers as they stared eye-to-eye. Goten would from then on always feel as safe (safer) in his brother's company as he did in his mother's. 

And there certainly were going to be plenty of times in which Goten and Gohan were going to be together. 

~*~

A/n: Aw. I loved writing this chapter. I'm not usually so sappy, but I just felt the need. *Wipes tear off cheek* *Sniffs* Well, what did you think? Do you need tissue? Do you just want to get on to the serious fun next chapter? Or are you content with knowing that Goten is in safe hands? (Duh, I mean, Gohan is the guardian angel, not Goku. Now there's a horrifying idea! *Shudders*) 

Thanks to DemonDancing, Frying Pan of DOOM, Nooka, A Random Faqn, and forgotten dead soul for their reviews! 

See ya next chappie!

AAS 


	3. Chapter the Second: Introduction

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Second

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Must I do this _again_? *Sighs* Don't own it. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

A/n: Back to another chapter of **Vigilante Angel**! This is a good chapter for me, the usual length and not so da*mn short. Hehe. I don't have much to say without ruining the story, so I'll let you get on wid it. 

:~*~:

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

:~*~: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

:~*~:

[Two Years Later]

"Mama, 'ho dose pweople?" A two-year-old chibi Goten asked his mother, who was currently cleaning the house. 

Chichi brushed her obsidian hair out of her face to look at what her son was talking about. Her eyes filled with tears. Goten was peering at a picture of Gohan and Goku, taken just before the Cell Games. They were smiling happily in Chichi's kitchen with a big birthday cake in the middle of the table. Gohan and Goku both had blonde hair, evidence of their Super Saiyan transformation. The occasion had been Gohan's tenth (eleventh according to the Room of Spirit and Time) birthday. 

Smiling sadly, she picked up the picture frame and sat Goten in her lap. She said to him, "That's your father, Goten. He was just like you. And that's your brother Gohan. They were both Super Saiyans and very powerful. That's why they're blonde, they are in Super Saiyan mode. Gohan was even more powerful than your father. He was a Super Saiyan Two." 

Goten's eyes were big. "My brudther was even more powerphul than dada? Wow!" 

Chichi nodded. "Uh-huh. Gohan was smarter education-wise than your father was, too. He studied a lot." Goten's nose crinkled at the studying part, but soon he was begging for more about his father and big brother. 

"Wat else dey do mama?" 

Chichi smiled. Perhaps it was best to start talking about Gohan and Goku again. She had not done so for the past two years, and maybe that hadn't been the wisest thing to do. Well, Goten would have asked someday, she was just glad it was now instead of later. 

"Well, when Gohan was four, your father took him to see his friends Krillin and Bulma. You remember them, the lady with blue hair and the bald guy with freckles on his head?" 

"Mmm," said Goten with a slight frown on his face. Then an enlightened expression dawned on his face when he remembered them. "Oh! I know dem, dey're nice." 

"Yes they are. So anyway, Gohan was two years older than you are now. They were at the Island I took you to, and the friends were having a good time. But then a man named Radditz came, and he took Gohan…" 

Chichi kept on the narrative, Goten's eyes widening at the part where Gohan broke out of the pod to beat up Radditz with his hidden power. The tale was so exciting to Goten, he had never heard about this before. He hadn't even know he had had a brother. 

When Chichi ended the story, Goten pouted. He wanted to hear more about his dead family members, especially his brother. 

"Mama, I wanna know more 'bout big brudther and dada. Tell me more?" asked Goten, his pouting lip still pushed out.

Chichi smiled and shook her head. "Sometime later, Goten. But for now, why don't you go out and play?" 

Goten's face immediately brightened up. "'Kay! 'Bye mama!" He jumped off her lap and ran out the door. Chichi watched him go, a reminiscent smile hovering on her lips. She turned back to her dusty house and got back to work. 

:~*~:

Goten ran through the woods, giggling happily. Growling playfully, a wolf streaked after him. Goten giggled again and hid in a bush. The wolf, Whey, pretended to have lost the chibi and prowled to and from before Goten's hiding place. A stifled giggle emanated from the bush and Whey cocked an ear at the sound furiously. He looked around and flashed off in an opposite direction than where Goten was at. Goten, having 'outsmarted' the wolf, crawled out of the bush, and skipped off in Whey's direction. 

Thirteen-year-old Gohan watched these antics from atop his tree branch, barely holding in his laughter. Whey was just as silly as ever, even after four years. Gohan could remember when he had first found Whey as a pup, four years ago. 

::**_It was getting dark. Gohan bid Icarus the dragon good bye and started off toward home. He trudged for a good fifteen minutes before he heard a pitiful cry. He looked around for the source and found a hurt wolf cub at the bottom of the tree he was behind. Gohan picked it up, wincing at the sound it made when he touched it. Gohan inspected it and found that the puppy had a broken left hind leg and a fractured right front leg. _**

Gohan was horrified. He whispered to the young pup not to worry, he was going to get it all cleaned up and in working order again. He ran at top Saiyan speed home, pushing his eight-year-old body as fast as he could make it go. He was home in record time, the wolf puppy in his arms yelping with pain. 

Gohan barged into his home past his surprised father and into the kitchen. He found his mother in there cooking dinner. For once in his life, Gohan ignored the smell of food cooking.

He yelled softly, "Mom!" Chichi turned around and spotted her son with a yelping wolf cub in his arms. Her jaw dropped and she was about to tell her son off for bringing home yet another_ wild animal in the house when her son interrupted her. _

"Mom, this wolf cub is hurt. See, his legs are broken. Can I treat him, help him get better? Please Mom?"

Chichi stuttered. Her son was taking responsibility for a wild animal! He was really growing up! "Sure, Gohan, but as long as you keep him outside." 

Gohan let out a huge smile. "Sure! Thanks, Mom! I'll do most of the work, you don't have to worry!" 

Chichi nodded wearily. Gohan carried the wolf pup outside again while his mother got together her first aid kit and followed him outside. Together, with Goku watching bemusedly, the mother and son cleaned and wrapped the wolf's legs, getting dirty and scratched in their work. Soon they were done, just in time for Chichi to rescue her food from burning, and Gohan was happy with watching the wrapped up wolf cub sleep outside. 

The next day, and the two weeks after that, Gohan took care of the wolf puppy he had named Whey after the tasteless gruel he fed the animal. Whey thrived swiftly, tottering around on his legs after two weeks. Ever since then, Whey had followed Gohan around the woods whenever Gohan came out. The wolf made friends with the wildcat and the dragon, and they all had fun.::

Gohan smiled at the memory. It was apparent that Whey had found a similar friend in his little brother, of which Gohan was glad. Speaking of which, there they came now. This time Whey was in the lead, seemingly running frantically for his life. A laughing Goten chased him, almost latching onto Whey's tail twice. Whey managed to dodge those two times and ran on. But soon both Goten and Whey got tired, the wolf before the young demi-Saiyan, and both collapsed in a panting heap. 

Gohan decided to keep the two wild friends company. He jumped from his tree to another tree's branch, then zipped to the ground behind them. He walked quietly up behind him, holding up his hands when Whey opened a yellowed eye. Whey closed the eye with a grunt. He reopened it, however, when he realized that his other man pack brother was kneeling by him. Gohan laughed slightly and rubbed Whey's head. 

Gohan sat on the ground between Whey and Goten. Whey growled a bit, but subsided when Gohan said, "Hey, he's my little brother. I can do this, you know." 

Goten slept through the whole exchange. He subconsciously felt his brother move between him and his wolf friend, and frowned a bit. But then a smile crossed his face again as a feeling of contentment only felt three times before settled around him. 

:~*~: 

__

Goten awoke. He rubbed his eyes, confused. Where was Whey? He was moving, but not of his own accord. He looked up and was greeted by the smiling face of his big brother. He blinked and smiled back. Goten was reassured by the bright smile on the person's face, like no harm was going to come to him while this person was near. 

Goten kept looking at Gohan. His tiny little brain was telling him something, but he couldn't figure it out. But when Gohan looked over his head at a disturbance in the leaves, it clicked. 

Goten tugged at Gohan's shirt. Gohan looked down at him, still walking. "Hi. Are you my big brudther Go'an?" Gohan hid a smile at the pronunciation of his name and answered his brother gravely. 

"Why, yes, I think I am Gohan. But I don't think I know your name." 

Goten smiled at the formal way his brother was addressing him. "I'm Goten." 

"Goten, huh?" Goten nodded. Gohan smiled the Son Grin™. "It's nice to meet ya, little brother. Now tell me, how do you know my friend Whey?"

Goten brightened. His brother knew Whey too! This was so cool! "Oh! I was pwaying here by myself and I weally wanted somwone to pway with, and Whey came and phound me, and we pwayed for a bit, but then Mama cawed (Gohan snorted with laughter at that word) and I had to go home." 

Smiling, Gohan listened as Goten chattered on about nonsense subjects. Soon they were at the edge of the woods and close to home, where they could hear Chichi humming to herself. Since she hadn't called for Goten yet, Gohan suggested that the two brothers spend some more time together. 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!!!!" Goten said, jumping up and down in front of Gohan. Gohan laughed and scooped his little brother onto his shoulder. Goten Grinned™ and hung onto Gohan's hair as the thirteen-year-old demi-Saiyan jumped up into one of the trees and zigzagged away from the house. 

:~*~:

They had ended up in the tallest oak tree in the whole forest. It was actually not that far from the Son house. It was Gohan's favorite spot to go to when he wanted to be alone. Now the Son Brothers, mostly Goten, were babbling away at a mile a minute. This time Gohan was talking. Goten had wanted to know what the symbol pendant on Gohan's necklace meant. 

"This? This means 'guardian' in Saiyago. Saiyago is the language of the Saiyans." Gohan said. Goten's eyes were wide. He reached for the pendant, viewing it with shining eyes. Gohan smiled at Goten's expression. 

The pendant was a kind of a figure eight on its side, with these little swirls on either end. There was a line in the middle of the figure eight, and the symbol was cast in the highest quality Kai bronze. The swirls had loops attached to them, in which the necklace's leather was tied to. The necklace leather was encircled twice around Gohan's neck so as not to prevent any action while sparring. 

Gohan asked Goten, "Do you know what a Saiyan is?" 

Goten nodded. "It's something that Vegethable-head is the Prince of, and dat Trunks, dada, you, and me are part of. I had an uncle who was a Thaiyan, but he died." Gohan was unsuccessfully trying to stifle his laughter. Goten had called Vegeta Vegetable-head! Oh, that was so funny. But he managed to push it down at the mention of Radditz. 

Gohan looked down at Goten. "I'm dead too, you know." Goten looked up and nodded. 

"You are, but you're here. An' dat's all dat mathers."

Gohan smiled at the two-year-old chibi's logic. Then they heard the last thing they wanted to hear at the moment: Chichi's voice, 'cawing' for Goten. (Hahaha!) 

Both brothers groaned in disappointment. Goten pouted and Gohan crossed his arms. They jumped down from the tree and stalked off toward the house. Goten suggested a race. Gohan laughed and sprinted off. 

"Hey, no fair! You didn't say go!" Goten yelled before running after the wayward demi-Saiyan. Gohan Grinned™ and ran slower. The race ended in a dead heat, Gohan matching Goten's pace exactly. Goten and Gohan Grinned™ at each other. Goten then skipped off toward his home, not noticing that Gohan wasn't at his side. It was only at the door that Goten paused. He looked back at Gohan. 

Gohan waved him off, telling him through their mental link, Sorry, Goten, but Mom doesn't know about me yet. She will though, but until then, don't tell her you met me, okay? 

Goten nodded, and went inside. Gohan watched his mother welcome Goten through the window, thinking, _That is what I left when I died and decided not to come back. *Sigh* On the other hand, I wouldn't have gotten to know my dad better, and I'll always be able to visit my mom as soon as I explain to her the situation. It's a nice thing to be Goten's guardian angel._ Turning around, he started off, putting two fingers to his forehead and IT to the checking station along the way. 

:~*~:

A/n: This chapter is MUCH better than the last chapter. Much more up to my standards. I don't think Gohan knew what he was talking about when he thought "It's a nice thing to be Goten's guardian angel". He's going to go through something very close to HFIL in the later years. Hahaha. At least until he learns to have fun. Oops, I said too much. 

How many people want me to make Gohan keep secret his guardian angel duties from Chichi and the others? How many don't? How many want me to have Gohan take advantage of the pass and visit the Z-gang once or twice a year? How many think he should follow the rules of the Otherworld? I look forward to your reviews! ;-)

Thanks to Frying Pan of DOOM, shadowphoenix, simba_rulz, Dan, DBZ Chick, and Nooka for their reviews! 

So long, 

AAS 

This Is To Be Continued… 


	4. Chapter the Third: Recollection

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Third

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: You really believe I'm worthy enough to own DBZ? I didn't think so. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

A/n: Welcome to the AAS Network, where the best story works of AAS are to be found. And now we present to you the third chapter of **Vigilante Angel**. Thank Frying Pan of DOOM for this chapter. She was the one who requested that I write how Dende and Piccolo react to Gohan's news when he visited them that night of Goten's nightmare. AASN honors her. 

:~*~:

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

:~*~: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

:~*~:

[One Year Later: Three Years after the Cell Games]

Gohan ducked. Osiran's leg swung over his head. Gohan kicked out at Osiran's other leg, sweeping it out from under her and dumping her on the floor. Osiron, Osiran's brother and referee of the match, called out, "One!" 

Osi struggled up. She and her older half-brother Ron were only a shade weaker than Gohan in his SS2 mode. They were also his friends in the Other World's Upper Heaven. Gohan and the Osi half-siblings were the only fighters their age in the whole dead Universe and had grown extremely close. 

Osi and Gohan duked it out again. Gohan punched her in the gut, and Osi tried to strangle him with her hands. Thank the Kais for Gohan's necklace, which took the brunt of the strangle hold. The two sprang apart and landed. Drawing out swords, Osi and Gohan did a reasonable imitation of a good sword fight on "Rurouni Kenshin". Gohan knocked the sword out of Osi's hand and pointed the tip of his own sword at her throat. Osi raised her hands and dropped to one knee in defeat. Gohan beamed smugly as Ron called the match in his favor. 

Osi rose from her position. Gohan sheathed his sword and helped her up. Ron retrieved his sister's sword and gave it to her. She accepted it and sheathed her blade. Turning around to Gohan, she grinned and bowed. 

"Well, Gohan, that's the first time you've beaten me in a swordfight. Have you been taking tips from my brother?" she said. 

Gohan nodded. He bowed to Osi when she straightened up. he straightened up in his turn. Chattering amicably, the three friends then turned around and set off for the cafeteria. 

At fourteen years old, Gohan had grown a bit since he died. He was now 5'5", and he wasn't about to stop growing just yet. His body was also a bit leaner and more lithe. He moved more like a cat than anything. His hair had gotten a bit longer again, but now it wasn't just a mop of hair; it was all spikes. One such spike served as a forelock that stubbornly stayed in front of his face no matter what. 

Gohan's face had also filled out. He had lost the baby features he had had when he had been eleven. Now his face sported a mature look, a look that finally showed on the outside the adult within Gohan. An additional feature to Gohan's face was a scar. The scar had come from a rather careless blow in a swordfight by Ron, back when Gohan was still relearning how to handle a sword that was Saiyan-proof. The scar crossed from the edge of his mouth on his left side over his cheekbone to just beside the outer edge of his left eye. Ron had nearly torn out Gohan's eye with that slash, but the eye had survived and worked just as neatly now as it had before that swordfight. 

The scar had healed quite nicely, and Gohan made no attempt to get the scar to close up all the way. He told his dad that if he ever went back to the Living World, he wanted a momento of his stay. Secretly, Gohan rather liked the scar and the way he looked with it. So he kept it and became known as one of the few Saiyans with a scarred face. 

The Osi siblings were both orange-skinned with blue eyes and green hair strutting down their spines to the small of their backs. Both Osi and Ron wore Gis like Gohan. Osi wore a royal blue one that covered up her chest with a light blue sash circling around her waist. Ron had on a black gi with an orange sash around his waist, in which his sword was thrust into. Osi and Gohan wore theirs over their backs. 

The trio reached the cafeteria and dug in. Soon Osi and Ron were done, but Gohan was just getting warmed up. The Osi siblings stood by as Gohan stuffed his face. He finished with thirty-seven servings of regular food, two servings of the appetizer, and three more servings of dessert: forty-two servings in all. 

When he finished, Ron remarked, "Well, you must have been a little less hungry than yesterday. You ate fifty servings then." Osi nodded, a disgusted and awed expression on her face. 

Gohan laughed. "Yeah well, I was playing with Goten yesterday, and man, can he wear you out! Whew!" 

Osi immediately asked, "Before I forget, did you tell your Namekian friends Piccolo and Dende about your guardian angel duties?"

Gohan nodded. "Yeah. Let me tell you how they reacted." 

::**_After Gohan left the house that day three years ago, he flew up to the Lookout. He met Mr. Popo watering the flowers, even at this late in the night. He tapped Mr. Popo on the shoulder, therefore startling the black assistant. _**

"Oh! Gohan, you startled me. What are you doing here? You're dead, aren't you?" 

Gohan scratched his head, laughing nervously. "Yeah, I am dead. I'll explain how I can be here when we talk to Dende and Piccolo." 

Mr. Popo beamed. "Okay, follow me Gohan." 

Gohan followed Mr. Popo to the Rotunda that was the Kami's residence. Gohan looked around. Not much had changed around the Lookout. But there was a sort of heavy feeling in the air, like a gloomy frog. Gohan couldn't quite place his finger on the cause. Giving up, the eleven-year-old chibi shrugged and walked after Mr. Popo again.

Mr. Popo, after leading Gohan around the Rotunda, finally opened one door. The two friends went in the room to see Dende sitting by a fountain. The look on his face was one of dejection and grief. He didn't notice Mr. Popo or Gohan at first. Mr. Popo had to clear his throat several times in order to get the young Kami's attention. 

Dende looked up at his black helper. The little pudgy gardener was smiling a little, though for what reason Dende couldn't fathom. 

Mr. Popo cleared his throat again, then said, "Dende, there is someone here to see you. Perhaps he will be able to cheer us all u again." He stepped aside. 

Before Dende's eyes, Gohan seemed like a hallucination. The new God of the Earth had wanted to see his dead friend again for so long since Gohan's death. But that thought was expelled when Gohan ran forward to give Dende the usual bone-crushing Saiyan hug and a cry of "Hey Dende! I know I should have come visited you sooner, but I was so busy!" 

Dende was ecstatic. Mr. Popo smiled to himself and left the room. He hadn't seen Dende so happy for the eight months that had followed the Cell Games. He believed that Piccolo would be just as happy, even if the adult Namekian wouldn't necessarily show it. 

Dende and Gohan were dancing around each other in their happiness when a shadow loomed up. Gohan looked up, way up, at his former sensei and friend Piccolo. The bright smile on Gohan's face shined even brighter at that sight. Dende stopped dancing and bowed formally to his Elder, while Gohan discarded such formalities and made a running beeline straight to Piccolo. 

"Hi Mr. Piccolo! I missed you!" 

Gohan slid to a stop right in front of the green Namekian. He gave another one of his tight Saiyan hugs to Piccolo, stepping back when he realized just WHOM he was hugging. 

Piccolo had come at Mr. Popo's call to the largest room in the Lookout. He hadn't quite believed what the plump man had told him, but Piccolo had gone anyway. Imagine what a shock it had been to him when he had actually heard Gohan's excited chattering and Dende's delighted laugh. And then Piccolo had turned the corner and seen Gohan, solid and well, albeit dead with the halo, standing before him. Now Piccolo was getting yet another body slamming hug from Gohan. Kami knew how many hugs like that he had gotten. To be honest, Piccolo had really kind of missed those hugs. He had missed Gohan in general. Not that he was going to admit that, of course. 

But still, a smirk found its way onto Piccolo's face. A "Hi, kid. It's nice to see you again," forced its way out of his mouth. Gohan looked surprised in turn, but it was replaced by the Gohan version of the Son Grin™. 

Piccolo and Gohan made their way back over to the fountain where Dende sat. "Okay, Gohan, tell us how you can be here if you're dead." 

Gohan shook his head. Mr. Piccolo always got straight to the point. "Well, to make a long story short, I got made a guardian angel. I have a little brother now, and I got appointed his guardian. That's how and why I can come into the Living World. King Kai says I'm invisible to everyone that doesn't know me, so I'm safe if someone strange comes by. This necklace I have," and Gohan pointed to his pass, "is actually a pass that allows me to come into the Living World whenever I want and for how long I want.

"My dad doesn't know I'm a guardian angel, nor does my mom. In fact, you two and Mr. Popo are the only ones who've seen me since I died. Well, my mom did too, but that was in her dreams. I had to rescue Goten, my little brother, from a nightmare." Gohan scratched his head in the traditional Sheepish Son Scratch™. 

"I don't know why I'm Goten's angel. I guess it's to make up for the fact that I died, and I'm not there for my brother. It's sort of the Kais' way of making me say sorry that my mom is all alone now." 

Gohan trailed off with that statement, a faraway look in his eyes. Piccolo stirred and spoke. "Kid, it's not totally your fault that that harpy of a mother is alone. It is_ your fault for not coming back yourself. But, you're here now, although you're still dead, so I forgive you." _

Gohan smiled. Dende looked with reproachful respect at Piccolo, but held his silence. Gohan asked, "Mr. Piccolo, do you think I should tell my mom that I'm allowed to come into the Living World?" 

Piccolo snorted. "Kid, does it really matter what I think? You should go with what you think, not what other people say." 

Gohan smiled again. "You're right, Mr. Piccolo, as always. I think I'm probably going to break her heart doing this, but I'm not going to tell her. I'm not going to tell the others, either. I don't really know why I'm doing this, but I guess it's that I don't want to see their faces just now. That's all." 

Dende smiled. "That's a good idea, Gohan. The shock from your death and Goku's hasn't completely worn off for them, and if they saw you now, even I don't know what'd happen." 

Piccolo nodded his agreement. Gohan sighed. Then they moved onto other matters. Piccolo told Gohan about the Gold Saiyan business. Gohan reacted by at first being shocked, then cool with it. He had been a hero, and now the whole world knew. But Piccolo said that they didn't know he was dead. Gohan's eyes widened. 

"That'll complicate matters a bit. Oh well, I guess the Gold Saiyan can't make another appearance again, eh?" 

Piccolo and Dende smiled. They chatted a bit more, then Gohan said he had to go. 

"I'll visit you before or after I visit Goten, is that all right?" 

Dende replied with a hearty, "Of course that's all right!" Piccolo simply nodded once. Gohan gave a wave, then disappeared using the Instant Transmission technique.::

Gohan smiled at the memory. Osi and Ron smiled too, for Gohan was a good storyteller. They thought that Goten was lucky to have a brother like Gohan. But then they thought how lucky they were to have a friend like Gohan. Seeing that Gohan was getting up, Osi asked him, "Are you going to play with Goten now?" 

Gohan nodded. "If that's okay with you guys?" They waved him off. Smiling to himself, Gohan performed his father's, and now his, famous mode of transportation. He Instant Transmitted himself out of there and to where his little brother's ki was waiting for him. 

:~*~:

A/n: Not much action done in there, except for the fight scene and the flashback, but no saving Goten in here. Oh well. Next time there'll probably be a prank, but I wouldn't bet on it. So now I've decided what I'm going let Gohan do with the pass. Sure, Gohan is going to go to the other members of the Z-gang, but he won't tell them about his guardian-angelship, as I call it. He'll just be there as a visitor. 

Well, that about covers everything that I wanted to say. So, I'll be signing off. 

Thanx to Frying Pan of DOOM, Mayleesa, DBZ Chick, DemonDancing, fyreblazen, TeAr-Of-A-rOsE, and Gosen the Saiya-jin. Now to answer Gosen's question…

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Gosen the Saiya-jin: What do you mean by your request? I'm afraid I don't exactly understand. ': ( Could you please clarify that for me so I can do it? 

So until next time,

This is Aleandra Alyra Sarienna, from **Vigilante Angel**, and AASN.

Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	5. Chapter the Fourth: Sojournings

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Fourth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Haha, very funny.

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;)

A/n: HEY! WHASSUP! I'm on a roll here! As promised last chapter, this chapter mentions a prank in progress! Whoopee! (Actual prank will have to wait until next chappie sorry.) Unfortunately, it also has Chichi supervising Goten's education! Man, when will she ever give up? Jeez, that's what screwed her first kid's childhood up in the first place! *Sigh* Have no fear, that will not impede Goten's relationship w/ his big brother Gohan in any way. *Evil laugh* 

:~*~:

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

:~*~: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

:~*~:

[Four Years after the Cell Games]

For his fifteenth birthday, Gohan was given permission to visit the Z-senshi for one day only by King Yemma. Gohan used the privilege right then and there, ignoring King Yemma's warning that he wasn't to use his angel pass to stay longer than 24 hours. 

Baba the Fortuneteller appeared to take Gohan to the Living World. "This is just to follow the rules. You aren't performing your angel duties by visiting your friends, so this is an entirely different matter." 

Gohan made a face at this, but he complied, for once. In the Other World, Gohan had a budding reputation for only half following the rules, if he did at all. For instance, Gohan visited Goten everyday, not just whenever Goten was in danger. For another example, the fifteen-year-old demi-Saiyan was fond of visiting HFIL and making a ruckus there. And Gohan was a notorious prankster with his partners-in-crime, Osi and, more reluctantly, Ron. 

Gohan had only started playing pranks eight months ago. The cause of this lay in the partnership of Goten and Trunks. They had played many pranks before, with a hesitant Gohan tagging along, but this one prank had been the funniest so far. It had involved Vegeta's hair, a pair of scissors, and three ki balls. Let's just say Vegeta was not happy at his haircut. But that had been what started Gohan's career. 

Gohan followed Baba down through the yellow clouds. Gohan and Baba engaged in humorous small talk until Baba told Gohan to "shut up I need to concentrate now". Gohan subsided. He smiled in eagerness. He couldn't wait to visit the Z-gang, especially his mom and Goten in the flesh.

Soon the unusual pair arrived in the sky above the Earth. Baba and Gohan regarded the planet's features before them, before Baba turned to Gohan. 

"Now, Gohan, you heard what King Yemma said. You are to return in 24 hours, no longer than that. I will personally come to retrieve you if you are longer than that. Is that understood, youngling?" Baba fixed a stern eye on the juvenile delinquent of the Other World. 

Gohan flapped a hand. "Yes Baba. Jeez, you sounded a lot like Mom then. Yikes." Baba cackled and wafted off. "See you in 24 hours, youngling." 

Gohan waved. "Bye Baba! Finally." He muttered under his breath. He floated in the air some more as he contemplated his first course of action. Deciding upon it, he sped off towards Dende's Lookout, where the kis of his young Namekian friend and Piccolo were residing. (Am I the only one who's noticed that ever since Piccolo merged with Kami, he doesn't really visit the waterfall anymore? Weird. I guess that's Kami's influence.) 

:~*~:

Gohan arrived on the Lookout. Dende and Piccolo were already waiting for him as they had felt his humongous ki level approaching them. Gohan landed on the tiled ground next to Piccolo and greeted/was greeted by them. Dende then conjured up a great big Saiyan-sized cake in honor of Gohan's birthday. Gohan Grinned™ and neatly decimated the cake within a matter of seconds. 

Piccolo asked Gohan after the cake had been finished, "Well Gohan, how does it feel to be fifteen-years-old?" 

Gohan pretended to think the question over seriously. "Hmm. Well, being fifteen-years-old feels great, but I'm even more honored to be fifteen WHILE I'm dead! It's my greatest triumph! Hahaha!" Piccolo smirked while Dende laughed at Gohan's expense. 

The friends laughed for a bit longer, but then Dende calmed things down with, "So Gohan, what brings you here? Are you here for Goten as usual? Or is this a special case because of your fifteenth birthday?" 

Gohan responded, "It's both of those reasons. But this time I'm visiting all of the gang. My mom too. But I'm still am not going to tell them about the angel business. I just don't really want anyone to know I'm an angel to my brother. 'Specially Vegeta." Gohan and Dende shuddered at that. Piccolo nodded seriously. There was going to be a very scornful Vegeta on their hands if the Saiyan Prince heard about that. 

So Gohan said bye to Piccolo and Dende, and went to visit those on Kame Island. 

:~*~:

Krillin looked up in the air as an enormous but familiar ki level approached. Somehow, the ki level didn't seem evil, but he got prepared for it anyway. He yelled to 18, "18, do you sense that ki level?" 

18 responded, "Yes, Krillin, I do. I also know who it is. Don't tell me you don't." Krillin concentrated harder on the ki. His jaw dropped as he recognized it. 

"It's Gohan! But how did he get here?" 

18 shrugged. "Search me. Let's save that question for Gohan to answer." 

They saw Gohan appear against the skyline. At that point, Master Roshi joined them in looking outside for the ki level.

It wasn't long before Gohan landed on Kame Island. He was greeted enthusiastically by Krillin, Turtle, and Master Roshi. 18 came along a while later, carefully so as not to get her head punched off. But Gohan seemed not to harbor any grudges against the Android, for he greeted her with the Son Grin™. 

18 looked eye to eye with the 5'8" teenager. She thanked him for gettin her out of "Cell's icky stomach." Gohan Smiled™ and assured the Android, "You're welcome." 

18 smiled slightly herself. Then Krillin bounded in with "Gohan, did you know? 18 and I got married and now we have a one month old girl named Marron!" 

Krillin's outburst resulted in a flurry of congratulations from Gohan to Krillin and 18. 18 went into the house and brought out the one-month-old baby Marron. She dumped her into Gohan's arms, much to his surprise. Gohan held her expertly in his arms, much like he had once held Goten. 

Krillin inwardly marveled at the way Gohan cradled his daughter. Marron was quiet too. Normally she'd be putting up a fuss, even at this age, whenever someone besides her family held her. But now she was snuggling even nearer to Gohan. Gohan had a tender smile on his face. That smile changed quickly to one of embarrassment when Gohan looked up to see the three adults and the Turtle all staring at him. 

"What?" 

Krillin shook his head in amazement. 18 took Marron back from Gohan as Roshi pushed his glasses up his long nose. 

It was then that Krillin noticed something different about Gohan's face. 

"Eh, Gohan? How'd you get that scar?" 

Gohan fingered his scar as he explained. "I was learning how to swordfight with my friends. I was twelve at the time and my friend Ron accidentally reached past my defenses and almost took my eye out. I repaid him, though, by disarming him and attacking him in a rage. Ron survived, although he's a lot more careful not to get on my bad side." 

The group shared a laugh over this. But then 18 brought up an interesting fact. "I don't quite understand how you got it. How could you get a scar from a swordfight? I mean, you Saiyans have tough skin." 

Gohan smiled, the scar on his cheek bunching up like a snake. "That's true. The sword probably would just have bounced off had it not been Saiyan-proof." Gohan grimaced. The others were nodding in final understanding. 

At that point, they felt Yamcha's ki approach the Island. Roshi sighed. It seemed that his island was getting more populated every year. 

Yamcha arrived, and the greetings started all over again. Gohan had to explain about the scar again, and Yamcha, like Krillin, exclaimed over how big and how much stronger Gohan had gotten. 

Yamcha asked, "How strong _are_ you, Gohan?" 

Gohan shrugged. "I'm near another level of Super Saiyan. It'll take me some time to reach it, though." Gohan was telling the truth, just not all of it. In fact, Gohan was right on the edge. He just needed a good dose of rage to push him right on over. 

Krillin and Yamcha's jaws dropped. 18 cocked an eyebrow. Roshi sat down hard on his shorts-clad rump. 

"Another level of Super Saiyan?!?!" they burst out. 

Gohan lifted one shoulder again. "Yeah. It's not that big a deal." 

"Not that big a deal?! Gohan, that's another level of Super Saiyan! Of course that's a big deal! Especially when Vegeta reaches it!" Krillin practically sobbed. Yamcha nodded fervently. 

Gohan smiled ruefully and scratched the back of his head. "Well, I guess you'd have to figure a way to survive if and when Vegeta does reach that level." 

Krillin and Yamcha face-faulted straight onto their backs. 18 smirked. She was liking this side of Gohan more and more. 

The party was moved into the Kame House, where Roshi suddenly remembered that it was Gohan's fifteenth birthday. Kame Island's residents insisted on giving Gohan a birthday celebration, if not presents. Gohan finally gave in. 

The television was turned on during the course of these events right onto Hercule's face ranting on about how the Gold Saiyan from the Cell Games and his light stuff were tricks used by Cell because he was a coward. Yamcha quickly changed the channel, but it was too late. 

Gohan's features darkened in anger. (Uh-oh Hercule ya better watch your back and your mouth!) He whirled around and stormed out of the house. Once outside, he took off into mid-air. from then on, Gohan's sanity and control went completely out the window. Yelling his rage, Gohan stepped over the edge. 

The Island's inhibitors watched as Gohan's ki skyrocketed. First Gohan's eyes turned from SS2 turquoise to a creepier blue color. His golden hair grew way long, past his shoulders, his waist, his knees, all the way to his ankles. Spikes frolicked all along the whole length of Gohan's mane, making it look wild. Gohan's brows disappeared as his forehead slid up higher in imitation of Vegeta's. Gohan stood up taller, his scar and his intense Neanderthal gaze completing the look and the creepy effect it had.

Gohan brandished his fists to the sky. 

"You want to declare us as tricks? D'ya? Fine! I'll let you go with your miserable life this time, but when we meet, you baka, I won't give any mercy! Got that?!?!" he yelled. His voice echoed darkly across the seething waters and cast a shadow across the sun's smiling face. 

Gohan slowly powered down again. His hair grew shorter, his eyes turned turquoise as he dropped to SS2. Then his eyes changed to green and his blond hair flopped over his face again as he powered down to SS. Finally Gohan returned to normal, his black hair and eyes glittering in the sun's unshadowed rays. He looked across the sea for a minute more, before he turned to his friends. He could feel Piccolo's question in his head and Vegeta's ki heading in his direction. 

He responded wearily to Piccolo's mental request, '_Sorry Piccolo, but I got a little mad. That Afro-haired baka from the Cell Games just declared me, the Gold Saiyan, as a trick used by Cell. I guess you can understand._' 

Piccolo snorted in Gohan's head and withdrew. Now for the rest of the gang. Gohan felt Krillin's reassuring touch on his shoulder. He smiled at his friend, reassuring Krillin that the kid was all right, for now. But Vegeta was not going to be okay until he got an explanation. And Krillin didn't really feel that Gohan was really ready to explain himself to the Prince. 

Krillin and Gohan stood there side by side in that position up until the scowling Vegeta pulled in. right away he demanded, "Kakkabrat no. 1! What are you doing here? What was that energy I felt earlier?" 

Gohan started to say something, but it was Krillin who interrupted. "Vegeta, you know the answers to your questions. Why bother Gohan with them?" 

Gohan stopped Krillin from going any further. "Thanks Krillin. Well, Vegeta, I shall give you the answers. It's my birthday today, and I was allowed to visit the Living World as a gift. As for the energy, it's simply a new level of Super Saiyan I just reached then." 

Vegeta's eyes bugged out in his head. "What?!?! A new level of Super Saiyan?! Darn it, the darn brat of Kakkarot has surpassed me _again_! Arrrrrrrrrrrgh!"

Vegeta blasted off to Capsule Corps. Gohan scratched his head, a confused look on his face. Did this last statement have anything to do with Vegeta's infamous Saiyan pride? Ah well, forget it. He had to visit Bulma anyway. 

:~*~:

On the way to Capsule, Gohan caught up to Vegeta. Vegeta was rushing along at top speed, his thoughts swirling sluggishly around his head. But when he noticed that the Kakkabrat was aligned up with him with little effort, Vegeta found himself suddenly angry. He was angrier than he had been in a long time. But he wasn't angry at the brat. Okay, so maybe he was. Most of his anger, however, was directed at himself. Why hadn't he trained harder when he had reached SS2? There had always been the possibility that there was another level of SS, and what had he done about that? Nothing! 

Gohan observed Vegeta silently. Vegeta was angry at himself. Possibly for letting Gohan surpass him again. Gohan didn't understand why it was so important that Vegeta be stronger than his dad. Actually, Gohan did understand a bit. Memories of fighting against Cell washed over him. Gohan remembered the awesome pride surging through his veins, singing for the revenge that Cell had to pay for making them suffer. The pride that had blinded him and made his dad sacrifice himself. Gohan still blamed himself partially for his dad's death, but it wasn't so acute as it had been before. 

Vegeta glanced at Gohan. Gohan wasn't so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Vegeta's glare, but he steadily ignored it. finally when Vegeta stared too long, Gohan turned toward him. 

"What are you looking at, Vegeta? My scar?" he asked, breaking the thin ice between him and Vegeta. 

Vegeta grunted. So the brat had noticed him staring. "Yes. How'd you get it? It is not normal for a Saiyan to have a scar, even one as shallow as yours." Vegeta was right. Gohan's scar was more of a permanent scratch than a scar. Gohan smiled grimly. 

"I got it swordfighting, Vegeta. With Saiyan-proof blades, for your information." Vegeta grunted again and said nothing more for the rest of the flight. 

They reached Capsule. Bulma was almost out of her mind with worry, but as soon as she saw Gohan, she totally forgot about why she was waiting. Vegeta snorted and stalked off to the GR to do some self-beating. Gohan saw him leave and yelled after him in a brief suicidal moment of courage, "Vegeta, you'll get stronger if you fight in your base power than in your Super Saiyan powers!" He received a death-threatening glare for his impudence. 

Bulma ruined Vegeta's effect as she threw her arms around Gohan. "Gohan! You're here! How?" 

Thus it went. Gohan told again about the special case for his birthday, about his scar, and suffered again through the tiring remarks on his height and his body. Bulma did end them quickly and asked what Vegeta had gone off for. Gohan then had to tell Bulma about his little rage escapade (Eu that rhymed). Bulma was shocked, to say the least, when she heard about SS3. But she promptly sympathized with Gohan when she heard the reason. 

"Gohan, I completely understand why you blew up. That man has been doing that for the last five years. He is annoying and a baka, but the world wasn't there to see your power. Only he and a few other humans did. So he can make those comments without being laughed at." 

Gohan scowled, but he accepted Bulma's reasons. They moved on to lighter subjects, then Trunks came on the scene. He obviously recognized Gohan and Gohan knew Trunks, but both were good enough actors that they convinced Bulma they hadn't talked before. Of course, Gohan did know who Trunks was from when Trunks was an infant, and Trunks had heard tales of Gohan in his spare time, but they hadn't (supposed to not anyway hehe) talked to each other in a conversation before. But when Bulma was called away to a problem within Capsule, the two devious demi-Saiyans immediately pounced on each other in brotherly affection. 

Gohan wasn't the only person Goten played with everyday. Trunks was second on the list. While Gohan was visiting, Trunks often came along and all three would play together. They had played many pranks, like mentioned above, and had romped around the mountains in the Sons' background many times. But the one thing that they hadn't done so far was spar. Gohan was planning to teach Goten how to spar sometime, but it was definitely not now. 

Once the initial hellos were over, Gohan leaned over and whispered something in Trunks' ear. They sprouted evil smirks way too similar to Vegeta's to be natural, and started plotting their latest masterpiece. But first, they had to get Goten on in it. So the prank would have to be played once Gohan visited Goten and Chichi. Trunks yelled to his returning mom that he was going to accompany Gohan to Chichi's. Not waiting for Bulma's shout of agreement the evil demi-Saiyan duo took off, soon to be a evil demi-Saiyan trio. 

:~*~:

Gohan hesitated outside of his house. He knew what reactions he would get as a welcome from his brother and his mother. It was exactly those reactions that supplied reasons for his hesitation, especially the latter. He didn't mind his little brother's welcome, but his mother was a little more damaging. (Heh.) Trunks stayed back, not wanting to get into the business of being welcomed by the Son household either. (Double heh.) 

Finally, Gohan moved. He stepped behind the door and opened it, revealing Trunks, but not himself. Chichi looked up from standing over Goten and his studying to see a glaring Trunks in the doorway. He spotted her and nervously waved. This was obviously a bad time to be intruding. Chichi welcomed the young prince of Saiyans in. As soon as Trunks moved in the doorway, the doorway darkened again. When Chichi looked up this time, her jaw dropped and her eyes filled with tears. Goten looked up and the biggest Son Goten Grin™ ever spread across his face. 

"GOHAN!" both Goten and Chichi cried. 

Goten and Chichi jumped onto Gohan at the same time. Chichi nearly wrung Gohan's neck to bits with her arms on one side while Goten clung to Gohan's spikes from the other side. Trunks fell into Goten's chair holding his stomach with laughter at Gohan's expression of harassment. 

"Mom!…Let…go…can't…breathe…" Gohan said with his tongue sticking out his moth. 

Chichi finally let go after an extra squeeze. Goten was put down gently from Gohan's shoulder. Chichi unsuccessfully wiped her eyes on her apron through her happy smile. She was so glad her first baby was standing right in front of here. he was so big! And healthy too. She sighed in relief. At least she knew they hadn't been starving Gohan over in the Other World. But wait, what about studying?! 

She put the question to her eldest son. She was gratified by his answer. "Yes, mom, I have been studying. King Yemma wouldn't let me not. Anyway, I can stay for 16 hours (1)." That was definitely true. Even King Yemma had heard of Chichi's frying pan of Armageddon™. He was too scared of Chichi's wrath to risk even provoke her slightly, and had gone out of his way to supply Gohan with his studying needs. Now Gohan was at the level of college in the second year of Master's Degree level and was getting to work on doctorate degree-level work. (And he's only 15…LOL!) 

Trunks and Goten looked at each other. It seemed Gohan still had to go through the same things that Goten was going through now. But if their short memory span served them correctly, he had started much, much, much earlier than Goten had. Chichi had only started to home school Goten a week ago. Gohan, of course, had been notified of this, and the brothers were trying to figure out a way to work around that. 

But now Chichi was worrying exaggeratedly over Gohan's scar, however healed it may have been after three years. 

"Oh Gohan you've got a scar! Who did this to you? I'm going to thwack them so hard with my frying pan they won't know what hit them! Ooh, let me just get my hands on whoever hurt my baby!" 

Gohan looked up to the skies. _I hope you're hearing this Ron. _Ron, of course, had heard everything that had gone on. He was now wishing he had never done that to Gohan. He had a feeling that Gohan's mother was a lot worse in exacting revenge than her son. He had no idea just how right he was… (LOL I'm using that line a lot lately. I like it too! Hehehe.) 

But Gohan reassured Chichi that "don't worry Mom, I already paid him back. But I won't hold you back if you do meet him one day." 

Ron in the Other World was paling at Gohan's matter-of-fact statement. Gohan was in no way kidding about this at all. Ron gulped forcefully. 

Then Gohan asked if he could borrow his little brother for the day. Chichi nodded yes. But she made sure that Goten promised to finish his paperwork when he returned. But then Gohan came up with the solution to the studying problem they had had for a week. 

"Why doesn't Goten just bring it with us. Maybe I could help him with any problems he has?" 

Goten's face lit up. He turned to his mom who immediately complied to Gohan's suggestion. Goten and Trunks punched the air victoriously while Gohan grinned at his little brother's reaction. Goten gathered up his study things and carried them outside. Gohan and Trunks followed. Chichi was a little sad that her eldest son was leaving her a bit for his brother, but she understood. It was natural for a big brother who didn't even know he had a little brother to want to spend time with him. (Hehe, if only she knew… Ack! Here I go again with that line! LOL!) 

Once in the area close to the house, Gohan and Trunks helped Goten finish the load of homework. They made sure that Goten did all the writing, since Chichi obviously would notice the change in handwriting. Finished, Goten, Gohan, and Trunks leaned into a three-headed huddle to inform Goten of the newest prank of the time. Goten's smirk soon joined those of Gohan's and Trunks'. They put the prank off to tomorrow when Gohan arrived from the Other World, for there was simply no time today. The sun was already setting on the horizon, and Trunks had to go home. Gohan and Goten heard quite suddenly, as did the resting birds in the vicinity, Chichi's voice screeching their names for dinner.

Gohan and Goten had another one of their scrambling races to the house. For the first time since Goten had started racing with Gohan, Gohan ran with him all the way to the house. The brothers smiled at each other and went into the house. They had just had their first, or second, glimpse into what life would have been had Gohan not died.

Dinner came and went. A flow of conversation about what has been going on in life for each of the Son members was started and still continued on into the late hours of the evening. Goten fell asleep on Gohan's lap as Chichi and Gohan talked animatedly. Chichi looked at the picture of the two siblings with fondness. Gohan had his arms around the ball of red gi, blue undershirt, and black spikes known as his little brother. Goten was snoring slightly as he slept, enticing smiles from his mother and his brother with each snore that came out. 

After a while, Chichi declared it was bedtime for the both of them. Gohan smiled sleepily as he stood up. He followed his mother to Goten's bedroom, which happened to be the room next to his. He slid Goten gently on the neatly made bed (LOL again) and allowed Chichi to cover him with the sheets. He smiled slightly at the scene mother and son made as Chichi bent to kiss Goten's forehead. Gohan lifted himself off the doorframe and went into his own room. There he got his own hug and kiss from Chichi before he went to bed himself.

Gohan had been sleeping for seven minutes when he was woken up by an insistent shake. He rolled over to see Goten standing there beside the bed. Gohan propped himself up on his elbow and asked, 

"Bad dream, squirt?" 

Goten shook his head. "Nuh-uh. I just want to sleep with you this time." 

Gohan smiled. "Sure, bro." Goten climbed into the bed and snuggled into his angel's arms. They fell asleep like this, comfortable and carefree next to each other. 

:~*~:

A/n: Now dat's wot I call a long chapter! Whew! The ending was a bit sappy, I know, but I seem to like to write them a lot. I'm not a cliffhanger junkie, unlike some people I've read -_- 

The prank will definitely be next chapter—there's just one problem. I don't have a clue what I'm going to write! *Readers face-fault onto faces* What?! I'm just winging it here, all right? Jeez! LOL I'm definitely looking forward to your reviews! I'll need a prank and a victim, so readers, do your magic and I'll try to do mine! 

Don't forget to review and tell me wot you think! 

:~*~:

(1)- I made Gohan come in the early hours of the morning, like around 6 a.m. (Whew!), and he's visiting his mom at 2 p.m. So that makes 8 hours go by visiting the other members of the Z-senshi, thus shortening the 24 hours into 16 hours. Just thought you'd like to know what I'm talking about! 

:~*~:

Thanx to **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **TeAr-Of-A-rOsE**, **Gosen the Saiya-jin**, **shadowphoenix2**, **simba_rulz** and **DBZ Chick1 **for their reviews!

Best regards,

AAS 


	6. Chapter the Fifth: Escapade

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Fifth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Snorts with laughter* Yeah right. Get outta here. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;)

A/n: THIS IS THE PRANK CHAPPIE! OH YEAH! However, I was disappointed with how many reviews I got offering ideas. So far, the only one I had was from **unknown soldieress**. As her idea is the only one I got, I'm using hers, with a little alteration or two. But next time, if there is one, I suggest all of you reviewers put your ThinkingCaps™and come up w/ an idea! A'ight? *Sets evil eye on reviewers* A'ight?! *Reviewers nod fearfully* Good. *Grinz* A'ight, let's get the ball rolling!

:~*~:

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

:~*~: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

:~*~:

[The Next Day: Four Years after Cell]

Goten woke up slowly. Apparently it was early in the day, which was unusual for the little demi-Saiyan. Usually he woke up when his mother called, or rather, screeched, him out of bed. He lay alone in the big white feathery bed that was his bed but not his bed. There was something wrong with that statement. Shouldn't there be someone with him…? Oh yeah, Gohan had been with him until earlier. Speaking of Gohan, where was he?! 

Goten leapt out of Gohan's bed and ran down the hall to his mother's room, yelling, "Mom, Mom, Mom! Where's Gohan? Where's shakei?" Goten began frantically searching the sheets and under the bed for any signs of his oniisan. 

Chichi watched her second son flitter about the bed. She didn't know, but wasn't Goten unusually attached to Gohan after seeing him for only one day? Chichi shrugged. "Goten, Gohan left for the Other World earlier today. He told you he would. Remember?" 

Goten killed his actions. "Really? Umm… oh yeah, he did tell me! Thanks Mom!" Goten bounded off the master bed and ran down to the kitchen. He rushed out of the door and was blasted straight in the face by the kyokkou. Goten fell onto his back, the kyokkou causing him to raise his arm over his face to protect his eyes. Once he got up and turned away from the sun, though, he was all right. 

Goten spotted movement in the trees and dashed off, his temporary blindness forgotten. Today was the prank day! Ooh, ooh, ooh! He couldn't wait. But the prank was going to have to wait until after breakfast. 

"GOTEN! BREAKFAST!" Goten was arrested mid-stride. The four-year-old forgot about the movement itself and sprinted back the short length of distance he had gone back into the house where Chichi and a waiting heap of 23 1/2 syrupy pancakes with 12 sausages and 13 pieces of thick bacon was waiting for him. (Yum…) 

:~*~:

Gohan sat chuckling in the Otherworld. He had seen Goten's stupefied reaction to the bright kyokkou and couldn't help but laugh at the exaggerated motion. The pool of water he was watching the Living World in rippled in response to Gohan's laughing. Gohan stopped his laughter and cast a wasted injured look at the pool for its admonishment. But Gohan wiped the incident from his mind as he watched his otoutosan go back into the house and to his patient breakfast. 

:~*~:

Trunks wasn't doing anything of the sort. He was still sleeping away, content in the calm before the storm that was going to be caused at Capsule Corps. 

That is, until Bulma's voice yelled, "VEGETA! YOU RUINED MY NEWEST HOVERBOT!" Trunks shot out of bed, his ears still ringing from his mom's voice resonating through the private residential part of Capsule Corps. Trunks winced. This was obviously not going to be a good day for Bulma or her family. (Hee, hee, hee, hee, hee.) 

:~*~:

Goten sat back in his chair. His small stomach was full to the brim with his mother's excellent cooking. This was going to be a good day. 

:~*~:

Gohan in the Other World was shaking his head. _Why did Vegeta pick today, of all days, to break Bulma's hoverbot? This is not a good thing. Oh well, we're just going to have to take our chances and not get caught! _

Gohan shuddered. 

:~*~:

Trunks gingerly crept down the stairs. _If I run fast enough by the lab, Mom might not see me. Here goes._

Trunks tensed just outside of Bulma's lab. But the worst thing ever to happen to him at that moment happened just then. His otousan came out. (*Winces*) 

:~*~:

Goten was just on his way to going out of the house when Chichi said, "Goten, where do you think you're going?" 

Goten froze. He turned around to see his mother before him with her hands on her hips. Goten brought his two index fingers together and tapped them against each other. 

"Uh, outside?" Goten said. 

Chichi glared at her second son. "Goten, you know what you have to do first thing in the morning." 

Goten hung his head. "Yes, Mom. Study. I'll go that now." Goten dragged his footsteps as he went up the stairs to his room, right next to Gohan's. But then a light bulb went off in his head (Oh, what a surprise!), and he came back down the stairs. 

"Um, Mom? Could I study outside?" He held his breath as his mother turned away from the sink. 

"Study outside?" she asked. Goten nodded, his face going purple from his lack of breath. 

Chichi tapped her chin. "Hmm. Well, you could use some fresh air sometimes. Sure. But no going off in the middle of your studying!" Chichi brandished her frying pan of Armageddon at her son, who nodded fervently. Goten bowed repeatedly to his mother, thanking her profusely, then zipped up the stairs. He grabbed his books and rocketed back down the stairs and out of the house again. This time, the kyokkou weren't there to practically blind him and Goten was able to skydive into the trees and into the forest without any difficulty. 

Soon he had plopped onto the ground and brought out his history work. Goten actually liked history. That must have come from the many stories his mother and Gohan had told him about the Z-bushi's past. He was deep into the history of the shoguns and the samurai before long. 

:~*~:

Gohan carried the prank ingredients under his arm. Everyone who spotted him with the bundle under his arm quickly got out of his way. They didn't want to be the random victim of another one of Gohan's pranks. Gohan just smiled at them and continued on his way to King Yemma's check-in station. 

He was kind of worried about what would happen that day, but he tried to calm down by telling himself that nothing would happen beyond the usual. It didn't work. He knew Bulma in this mood too well to be calm about her reaction. He only hoped Vegeta wouldn't barge in on the scene too. Though from what he had seen in the pool, the situation at Capsule Corps was not something he wanted himself or Trunks or Goten to be in. 

Gohan sighed. This was not a good day to be playing pranks on a certain someone at all. But the Demi-Saiyan Pranks Co. always played their pranks on the designated day, rain or shine. Or Bulma's temper. 

:~*~:

Trunks scrambled away from his otousan. He had thrown himself between Vegeta's legs out to the other side, barely escaping the scene. Vegeta, fortunately, was in no mind to pound his gaki into the tiled floor of the GR. He stormed off in the opposite direction that Trunks was going. The proud Saiyan Prince, er, King, was hungry and in so foul a mood that there were going to be more than one kitchen bot lying around the room in pieces. 

Trunks stopped running long enough to realize that he was safe from any danger from his father. The chibi prince of Saiyans sighed with relief. He strolled back to the lab in which his mother was raging with the forces of a tidal wave and peeked in. 

"Mom?" Bulma looked up at her son's apprehensive face. "What?!" she barked. Trunks gulped and slid in carefully. There was no knowing to which degree his mother's temper was set on this day, so he tread lightly. 

"Um, Mom, can we go over to Goten's house? Please?" Trunks unconsciously enforced a little of the Brief version of the Son Puppy Dog Look™ on to his face. Bulma's face softened a bit. Her anger cooled off enough for her to smile at her son and nod speechlessly. Trunks smiled cheerfully and bounded off. Bulma shook her head at her son's exuberance and grabbed an intercom. She called into it, "Cimera, would you please drive my son to Chichi's house? I'll call her and tell her Trunks is coming over." 

The intercom crackled as the robot on the other side said, "Yes, Miss Bulma, it will be done, Miss Bulma." 

Bulma cut off the transmission and went back to her work with a frown. Darn that Vegeta! The Hoverbot 1250 was a new invention of hers that she had been working on for several months. She had just finished it today, but Vegeta had gone and ruined it! Gaah, she might as well start re-working on it and get it over with. 

:~*~:

Dende sweatdropped with relief. He hadn't been sure if Trunks' Puppy Dog Look™ would work on the enraged Bulma, but luckily it had. She had cooled down enough to forget about Vegeta and to get back to work. Hopefully, the prank the demi-Saiyan trio was going to play wouldn't end up in _too_ hard consequences. He hoped. 

:~*~:

Goten finished the history works with no prob. Now onto science! 

:~*~: 

Gohan waved bye to King Yemma and concentrated on his little brother's ki. He was trying to see if he could work the Instant Transmission without using the two fingers. Now if only…

With a _poof!_ Gohan was gone. 

:~*~:

Trunks got out of the car Cimera, his nanny robot, was driving. _Thank Dende! If I had spent another millisecond in that car, I would have burst! _

He turned around and sauntered off to the land around the Son's house. But once he caught sight of the house itself, he stopped. Trunks didn't want to get in the way of Chichi's frying pan of Armageddon if he didn't have to. But then he spotted her face looking out of the window, quite supposedly for him. Trunks sighed. _Oh well, here goes nothing_. 

Trunks stepped cautiously within Chichi's range of eyesight. She saw him and waved. Trunks waved back nervously. Chichi came out of the house wiping her hands on a towel. She had obviously been washing the dishes. 

"Hi Trunks! Goten is out here somewhere, hopefully doing his homework. If you want to play with him, you'll have to wait until he finishes it." said Chichi. 

Trunks nodded. "Sure, Goten's mom. When I find him, I'll make sure he's done it all before we play." He assured her. Chichi nodded and went back inside. 

"Oh wait. Do you want a snack?" Trunks' face totally lit up at the mention of a snack. To think that he hadn't had breakfast yet! Chichi took the chibi's face as a "yes". Trunks followed his best friend's mother inside the Son Household. 

:~*~:

Goten was halfway through science. It was just that he couldn't remember what the harvest moon was called. _Hunter's moon? No, that was something else. Blue moon? Hmm, I don't know. I better ask Gohan. _

Hey Gohan? He reached out for his brother's mind. Surprisingly, Gohan was quite near. Only on the opposite side of his tree. 

Gohan snapped his fingers. _Darn! He got me. Oh well. _Yeah, squirt? Goten smiled happily at Gohan's special brotherly nickname. 

What is the harvest moon called? 

Gohan came around the tree and plopped down by Goten. "Isn't it the blue moon?" 

Goten Grinned™ brilliantly at his niisan. "That's what I thought. But I wasn't sure, so I asked you." 

Gohan Grinned™ back. "Hey, where's Trunks?" asked Gohan. 

:~*~:

Trunks sat much like Goten had just that sunrise. The snack had eventually found its way into breakfast as Trunks had asked for, and got, more food. Chichi smiled smugly. She always liked seeing a Saiyan that was full. It meant she'd done her job. 

Trunks pushed himself away from the table. "Thanks, Mrs. Son. That was great." Chichi smiled at the chibi crown prince of Saiyans. "You're welcome Trunks. Now go find Goten. And if he's not doing his work, tell him he's not having any food until he gets it done!" 

Trunks winced at Chichi's threat. _Jeez, Goten has a mother just like mine! But Goten's mom can cook at least, so she's more dangerous! Yikes! _He quickly located Goten's, and Gohan's recent, ki and flew off to meet them. 

:~*~:

Trunks and Gohan helped Goten finish his work again, like yesterday. It became their routine in later weeks and years, but this is not later weeks and years. This is prank day. Once finished, Goten put his things neatly into his bag and slung the knapsack over his shoulder. Together, Trunks and Goten went to Goten's house and dropped the messenger bag off. Gohan stayed behind in the trees, but as soon as the squirts returned to the trees, he sped off at hyper speed through the foliage. Laughing and shouting, the kids chased the fifteen-year-old all the way to the Capsule. 

:~*~:

Trunks slid carefully along the floor of the Capsule Residence's attic. His mother's ki was still in the private laboratory, but you never knew with Bulma. Around his waist was a strong string tied in a shepherdsman's knot. At the end of the string was Gohan, carefully feeding it to Trunks as the chibi moved ahead. Goten was holding the prize ingredients of the prank. 

Trunks stopped directly above the private lab. He felt around for the piece of the floor that he had cut out earlier and fit back into it. Finding the edges, the future crown prince of a very dead race slowly got off of it and lifted it up gradually. Light shone through the hole, setting off Trunks' face. Trunks set the slab of floor gingerly beside him and peeked in. Yep, his mom was in there. Her blue head was straight below him, the perfect angle for their devious deed. 

Trunks stuffed a smirk back where it came from and motioned for the other two to come. Gohan and Goten nodded and crawled over to the light. The light caught their faces too, making them visible to anyone smart enough to look up. Unfortunately, not even Bulma was genius enough to sense something wrong. Heh, heh, heh. 

Gohan and Goten had to suppress their own smirks. Hastily, the string was untied from Trunk's waist and switched to his hand. They attached Gohan's end to one of the two things Goten held and dangled that thing over the edge of the hole. Gohan painstakingly put the thick slice of floor back into place, allowing an inch of room for the string. The stage was set, now it was time for the grand finale. (Yu-gi-oh fans, do you know who I'm imitating? .) 

Gohan, Trunks, and Goten all looked at one another. They were about to pass the point of no return. They all smirked at each other and got to work. 

They lay around the inch of light Gohan had let stay and watched carefully as their latest prank invention was put to the test. 

:~*~:

Bulma hummed peacefully. She loved it when her inventing was going right and she was having no interruptions. Unfortunately, she was going to get the interruption and the shock of her life. 

Something landed on her head. She tried to shake the offending thing off, but it refused. Bulma growled and moved her hands. She happened to look in the mirror when she looked up and her eyes widened. Shrieks tore through the air and not only caused the birds roosting in the trees to scatter, but also made Vegeta to stop his training and run to his mate. 

Vegeta rushed to the door of Bulma's private lab. He found the onna screaming and pointing at a corner. He stepped in and saw a huge bristly sandy-colored spider sulking in it. A look of revulsion crossed his face as the thing moved back and forth. 

Bulma yelped at Vegeta, "Kill it, Vegeta! I hate spiders!" 

:~*~:

The demi-Saiyan pranksters were barely holding in their laughter. Trunks had coiled up the string when Bulma had yanked the spider out of her hair. He and Gohan were holding on to each other with tears streaming down their faces. Goten was faring a bit better. But that was only because the remote control in his hands was needed to make the spider seem realistic. If Trunks' parents found out it was only stuffed, then the whole point of the prank would be defeated, as in _defeated_. But Goten _was_ grinning maniacally. 

Gohan and Trunks returned to the scene of the crime just in time to see Vegeta corner the spider. Goten yanked on a joystick just as Vegeta pounced. Vegeta crashed into the wall as the mechanical stuffed spider scuttled away from him. It headed toward Bulma who screamed and tried to get out of its way. But the spider seemed fixed on her path, for it moved in each direction Bulma moved and always directed itself towards her. Vegeta got himself out of the wall and crept up on the monstrosity.

Goten pushed another joystick and pushed a button as Vegeta jumped. The spider sidestepped fifty paces as fleetly as a spider that's been dead for quite some time could move. It was just fast enough that Vegeta just barely missed it and ended up banging his nose on the floor. 

Vegeta ignored the throbbing pain in his nose and dashed after the spider. The spider soared in the air and landed on the wall. Vegeta performed a sidekick and smashed the wall with the spider. But the spider survived by landing on the floor, thanks to Goten's handy joystick reflexes, and it continued to terrorize the two mates. 

Vegeta, at last, took a strategic view. He chased the spider around in one direction, then super speed ran in front of it and stomped it to pieces. 

:~*~:

Goten, Trunks, and Gohan gulped. This was their cue to get out of there. They made sure they had everything they came with and scooted out of there as fast as they could. Namely, Gohan's fingers-free Instant Transmission. (I'm going to call Goku's version Instant Transmission, and Gohan's version Kai Transmission, since that's the version Kibito Kai uses in DBZ.) They checked to make sure they had everything, because they had learned from earlier mistakes of the third kind to not leave any evidence behind, or it's starvation rations for them. Goten did at the last moment grab the piece of floor back into place. Trunks grabbed the bag Gohan had discarded on the floor, and Gohan grabbed the two chibis and Kai Transmitted outta there. 

They flashed out of the Capsule Residence Attic just in time to miss hearing Bulma's voice screeching, "TRUUUUUUUNKS!" For they had discovered that the spider was stuffed full of mechanical gears and bolts. The spider was stuffed, yes, but it had been taken apart and put together with the things that make up robots. But they had yet to find out the finishing touch of the prank. 

Bulma touched her hair to straighten it up. Her fingers met with a stick substance and she froze. She looked in the mirror again and discovered that blue bubble gum was stuck in her hair. Her voice rang out again more ferociously, "TRUUUUUUUNKS!" 

Vegeta winced. First, the damage he had inflicted upon himself, and now his bloody ears. The gaki was going to have a lot to pay for.

:~*~: 

Bulma stomped out of the lab. She was having the cleaner bots clean the mess of the mechanical spider up. She was going to find out just how her son had played such a prank on her all the way from the land around the Son household. She didn't know how he had done that, but this was the last straw. 

Vegeta strode after her. The gaki and he had an appointment to take up in the GR, and Vegeta was going to make sure he wasn't going to miss it. 

:~*~:

Chichi looked up as a very angry pair of mates steamed their way to her house. She got out her frying pan of Armageddon when she spotted Vegeta. If there was trouble Vegeta wanted with her son, he was going to be given a good thwack on the head, _hard_. 

Bulma screamed, "Where is my son TRUNKS?! We need to have a WORD with him!" Chichi's face relaxed from fearful for her son to surprise. 

"What's the matter? Why do you need a word with him?" Bulma's face was too frightening to bear, except that Chichi had had that face herself sometimes when Goten got away with a prank on her. Maybe that was what they were over here about. 

It was Vegeta who growled, "The brat pulled a prank on us. It involved a spider and the onna's hair. I also want to get the gaki for the damage I had to suffer through while trying to kill a mechanical spider." 

Chichi mouthed an "oh" gesture and let them into the house. She watched Vegeta suspiciously should any harm come to her furniture by way of the Saiyan, but she turned her back on him long enough to call, "GOTEN! TRUNKS! GET OVER HERE!" 

Gohan grimaced sympathetically at the twerps. They were going to have to do some very, very, _very_ good acting to get out of this. The chibis bowed their heads and trooped out of there. But then they remembered that they weren't supposed to know anything about what they had done, so they resumed their racketeering and their disruption of the peace of the forest. Whatever peace the forest had, anyway. 

They swung like monkeys down to the steaming parents. Bulma and Vegeta turned around as their happy (although guilty) children came into their sight. They sobered at the angry look mirrored on the Briefs' faces and on Chichi's. But still they came innocently (ha, ha) to face the doom before them. 

Gohan winced as Bulma's voice squealed at the two twerps. Well, that was that, and Gohan had better get back. (Ew, that rhymed.) Gohan shuddered again and Kai Transmitted back to the Other World, leaving his otoutosan and his kyoudaibun to face the fearsome wrath of a certain Prince, a genius, and a frying pan made of Armageddon. 

:~*~: 

A/n: What do you think of the Japanese I put in there? Would you prefer I do without? Or what? I'm tired of having to translate, so I might not put so many words in there, but according to your opinions, (if and when you care to voice them -_- yes you!) the fate of the Japanese language hangs in the balance! 

So, **unknown soldieress**, how'd you like the way your prank was organized? You didn't really give me details, so I let my own imagination take over. Here's a Goten plushie. *Hands chibi Goten plushie to her* There's Goten! And he's holding the remote control thingie to that spider! *Evil grin* 

Okay, everyone, this is what'll happen next chappie! Goten will be playing, and he falls into danger. But Gohan is in the Other World still. Can he rescue Goten before it's too late? Find out next time, on **Vigilante Angel**. 

:~*~:

Translations:

Shakei: my elder brother

Oniisan: older brother

Kyokkou: rays of the rising sun

Otoutosan: younger brother

Otousan: father

Bushi: warrior

Gaki: brat

Onna: woman

Kyoudaibun: sworn brother (I like this one, especially where I placed it. ^_^)

:~*~:

Thanx to **simba_rulz**, **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **unknown soldieress** (most especially), and to **DBZ Chick1**, I have a question. 

****

DBZ Chick1: What do you mean you don't care what I write? You're reading it, aren't you? O_o MOMMY! DBZ CHICK1 ISN'T READING MY FICCY! (LOL!) 

'Bye, 

AAS

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	7. Chapter the Sixth: Selection

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Sixth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: I do really own Dragonball Z. NOT! 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Dun, dun, dun! It's back to **Vigilante Angel**! It's now time to introduce the newest member to **AASN**! 

Autumn: What do you mean the newest member? I've been a part of it since it started! 

Yeah, well, we just acknowledged you, all right? 

Autumn: *Sighs* I'm their current muse. I'm the one who slapped AAS with the idea for **Double Hate**, which by the way you should check out, and—

Um, hello? Shouldn't we get on with it?

Autumn: Well, excusez moi! *Rolls eyes* I'm not tellin' you what's happening in this chappie. You're just going to have to read. Which is what you're here for. 

Duh. 

Autumn: *Glares* I'm going to muse slap you if you don't stop that!

Stop what? 

Autumn: Gaah! Just get on with the transmission! 

Yes ma'am! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

****

Inside someone's head

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

[A Month Later: Four Years after Cell]

Goten finished up his writing of a report for his mother on the philosophies of Confucius. He set the paper aside on the desk and reached for the next assignment. But there seemed to be something wrong with his fingers. They weren't grasping anything. 

Goten finally dragged his eyes over to where his homework load was. The sight he was confronted with was equably as strange. There appeared to be no more books with the little instruction papers peeking out of the pages. 

The chibi stared disbelievingly at the empty desk next to him. Then a broad Grin™ spread across his face. He yelled, "Mom! I'm done studying!" 

Chichi's head poked around the corner of his doorframe. Goten jumped. He hadn't expected his mom to get here so fast. He watched nervously as Chichi prowled into his room and looked over Goten's neat work. She gave no indication of what she thought of it, even as she left the room. But her voice did call after her, "All right, Goten, you can have the rest of the day off. But it's back to the books tomorrow, do you hear me mister?!" 

Goten nodded frantically, even though Chichi couldn't see him. So it was no wonder Chichi's sharp voice cut through the air, "Well, Goten, what do you say?" 

Goten gulped. "Yes, ma'a—I mean, yes, Mother." 

He heard no more from his mother, so Goten decided to sneak down and see how she was doing. He crept down the stairs and peeked into the kitchen. Chichi was sitting at the table drying the dishes and watching the television news at the same time, something Goten wondered how she could do. Goten had tried to do that once, and let's just say the Frying Pan of Armageddon had been very happy that day. 

Goten quietly left the lair of the harpy and stepped outside. He was ready to be #1 under the sun at long last. 

Goten stretched his little chibi body to its fullest height, which wasn't much, if you care to pardon my French. (No offense to any Frenchies, anybody who likes/is related to any Frenchie, or anybody who is simply offended by these kinds of remarks.) 

Goten finished his full body expansion and smiled contentedly. He wondered what he was going to do today. Oh he knew! He hadn't had a swim in a lake for a long time! 

Goten zoomed off. The youngest demi-Saiyan could be very smart when he wanted/needed to be, but otherwise he resembled his father in every sense of the word (except for not caring about his family). 

It wasn't very long before Goten reached the high cliffs above his chosen lake. Goten looked around and spotted even more formidable crags than the ones he was standing upon. With a lunge almost too powerful for a human but a totally careless effort for Saiyans, the spike-haired Goku-imitation launched off the imposing monoliths he had been standing on. 

It was during the rush of air as he hurtled through it that Goten was distracted by the flurry of brown fur and strong antlers that was a bull deer fleeing. It was only for a moment, but that and a miscalculation in the distance between the cliffs and the power he needed to clear the gap was enough to guarantee the littlest half-breed's downfall, literally. 

Goten smacked straight into the bottom of the highest precipice. The mountains were dense enough that the fall cracked Goten's skull, but Goten was enough of a thick skull that the mountain didn't last long either. 

Goten slid down, slowly at first, but gaining speed all the while. Soon he reached the foot of the canyon and plunged straight into the lake's green depths. 

Goten revived slightly when he felt his body impact with the water, but only so much as to think, _Gohan…_ before promptly passing out again. 

~*~

Gohan whirled around. He started running, ignoring North Kai's calls of "Gohan! Where're you going?" 

Gohan had to get to Goten quickly. He had felt Goten reach out for him and had immediately known something was wrong when he couldn't feel Goten's mind below him. 

Ignoring standard procedures, Gohan IT'd to where he had last felt Goten's ki in the Living World. 

~*~

He landed on the face of a huge brooding bluff. It was cracked in the middle, enough to make the fifteen-year-old demi-Saiyan have to steady himself. 

Gohan looked everywhere for Goten. He noticed the ripples in the lake and instantly dived in. 

It took a while for his eyes to adjust, but it took even longer for Gohan to spot Goten. He looked hastily in all the places on the lake ground he could reach. He didn't find any trace of his brother and time was running out. 

Taking a breath, Gohan surged back into the water. he now looked more carefully. He registered which way the fish were going and went in the opposite direction of each school he saw. It took a long time, but Gohan finally saw a glance of orange cloth. He flew after it, flashing like a human-Saiyan fish. 

With every stroke, every kick, every movement of his body, Gohan got nearer to the drowning Goten. Finally, after hundreds of thousand of eons, the guardian grabbed a hold of his moribund ward. The dead propelled himself and the dying out of the water as fast as the seasoned swimmer could. 

Within seconds, the Go-brothers were out of the water. Heart in his throat, Gohan checked his otoutosan's vitals and ki. The ki wasn't there, and Goten's pulse was so weak Gohan couldn't feel it. as a last resort, Gohan laid his head on the unmoving chest for a heartbeat. Nothing. 

With a sickening feeling in his stomach, Gohan realized Goten was beyond life. He was dead. 

Instead of blowing up in his sadness, Gohan simply closed his eyes and crumpled to his knees. His whole body started to tremble and the ground was splattered by drops of salty rain. Gohan was concentrating so hard about his brother's state that he didn't know he had stepped into Goten's head. (Aha! The infamous moment! I always write DBZ fics were at some point we see the inside of someone's head.) 

**But the blackening ground underneath Gohan alerted him and made him look up. He saw Goten's orange and blue gi standing in front of him. slowly the eldest demi-Saiyan stood up. he attempted to move forward, but found he couldn't exactly. But then the person in Goten's gi outfit moved, and Gohan felt like he was being pulled forward. **

~*~

****

After Goten had passed out, he had slept for quite a while. But when he had been taken out of the water, he had woken up in this place. He had looked around for a while, the scientific gears in his mind whirring away at the impossibilities of such a place like this existing. But then something warm filled the atmosphere with its presence, eventually filling him up with it. The warmth gave him the courage boost to move deeper into the labyrinthal shadows. 

Goten didn't know how long he had been walking, but when he spotted the tiny light a few miles away, he was glad. He continued moving, but he was actually a bit slower now, as if he didn't really want to get to the light. In actuality, he wanted to get closer to the warmth that had been accompanying him all this while. 

The pair of demi-Saiyans finally reached the light and the hologram within. To Goten, it was the picture of a man who was exactly like him, only as Goten probably would look in the future if his hair didn't change and he switched to a short-sleeved version of his undershirt. But to Gohan, the image of their dead father told him all he needed to know about why he was here. This was the moment almost everyone went through in near-death experiences: the choice of life or death was theirs and theirs alone. 

Gohan stopped being pulled a step before Goten did. Gohan stepped back another step and waited. Goten examined Goku for some while before he asked, "Are you my tousan?" 

Goku's hologram smiled and nodded. Gohan knew that the hologram was just a hologram. This wasn't actually his father speaking, but rather a pre-programmed image activated in a near-death experience. But Gohan made no move to intercept the image. It wasn't in his job description. 

Goten smiled too. But he didn't move forward to hug his father. he simply asked, "Am I dead?" 

The hologram shrugged. "I don't know, Goten. It depends on if you decide to be dead or not. If you decide that yes you are dead, then you will come with me to the Otherworld. But if you live, then Gohan'll take you back to the Living." 

Goten turned in surprise. The hologram of Gohan smiled at his shock and snickered a bit. Goten Smiled™ brilliantly at his oniisan before looking back between the two. He scratched his head and asked, "How do I decide if I'm dead or not?" 

The holograms looked at one another and nodded. They both turned and walked away from each other. Goten stared after first Gohan, then Goku. He lingered at Goku's back. Eventually he ran to catch up with one of them. 

~*~

Goten opened his eyes. Where was he? He saw blue sky and white clouds. He saw a cracked mountain and a rippling lake. And best of all, he saw a Grinning™ Gohan kneeling over him. 

Goten Smiled™ dazzlingly at him. "Hi, niisan. Am I dead?" Gohan shook his head. "No, otouto, you're not. Thank Kami for that." Goten smiled sleepily. Gohan smiled as he watched his "squirt" yawn. Goten ended his yawn and smacked his lips lazily. Gohan chuckled and shook his head. 

"C'mon, lil bro, let's take a walk and dry out those clothes before you go home. You don't want Mom yelling at you because you came home all wet." 

Goten perked up a bit at that. He dragged himself to his feet and walked around with his brother. Soon his clothes were dry and his attitude was back to normal. But he would never, ever, forget that his big brother had saved his life yet again from the Otherworld. But hey, what are big brothers and guardian angels supposed to do if not that?

~*~

A/n: Whew! I'm glad I got that out. Now I have no idea what to do next chapter. I'm all out of ideas for the next year and the year after that. But I do have an idea for Gohan's eighteenth year and Goten's seventh year. Don't worry about that. Muahaha. You probably already know some of what I'm talking about, but don't mention it! 

Autumn: Aw man, you mean I have to summon Aline, the muse for **Vigilante Angel** and tell her you seriously need a muse slap? 

Yeppers. 

Autumn: Humph. All right, I'll tell her to give you the extra hard one then. *Evil grin*

No, no, no, not that one!

  
Autumn: Yeppers, the infamous Son Pan Slap™! 

*Faints*

Autumn: *Snickers* I'm off to the **AASN** headquarters to get Aline! Ta, ta!

~*~

Translations:

Otoutosan: younger brother

Tousan: father (e.g. "Hello Dad!")

Oniisan: older brother

Niisan: older brother (like "Hi big brother!") 

Otouto: younger brother ("Hey, lil bro.") 

~*~

Thanx to **Nooka**, **unknown soldieress**, **simba_rulz**, **madA505**, **DBZ Chick1**, and **SSJ5Tigger **for their reviews! 

Safe swimming, 

AAS

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	8. Chapter the Seventh: Reminiscence

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Seventh

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: I really don't want to have to do this, but I. Do. Not. Own. Dragonball. Z. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: I'm in a bad mood right now, so I'm going to be doing very little talking. Go right ahead and read the seventh chapter of **Vigilante Angel** from **AASN**. 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

[Three Weeks Later: Four Years after Cell]

Gohan touched off the ground with his hand. He straightened up and looked for his brother's ki. He felt Goten at Capsule Corps with Bulma, which was understandable because Chichi had somehow gotten it into her head that Bulma could teach Goten a lot more about science and technology than the wife of Goku could. (Pfftt.) Trunks was also at Capsule, but in the vicinity of his father. Gohan winced. It seemed that Trunks was still getting punished by his dear old dad for the prank seven weeks ago. 

Gohan shook his head. Since Osi and Ron had to entertain the newly dead spirit of their supercilious grandfather, they were busy today. Gohan didn't really want to spend any more time with his dad today as he had been for the last three weeks. And since Pikkon was officially Goku's sparring partner, Gohan couldn't exactly hang with him. 

Gohan decided to make due with finding his old, old, very old animal friends Whey, Icarus, and Cassias the saber-toothed tiger. (What is his name anyway?) Making sure his ki was sufficiently dampened, the fifteen-year-old dead demi-Saiyan strolled off with his hands in his blue sash. 

~*~

Gohan peeked down from his perch atop the cave lip leading into Icarus' usual cavern. He could feel the dragon's ki in there, along with another dragon's ki, supposedly female. His eyes told him what his senses said. Icarus was madly flirting with a female dragon just as desirous as her partner was. Gohan smirked to himself and sneaked away. He chuckled slightly at the thought that _Icarus is all grown up_.

Gohan held himself back to let the bird traffic fly through, then jumped from the cave onto the ground back into the trees beyond. 

——

Icarus raised his head suddenly. He had just thought he had glimpsed a flash of a greatly familiar shade of purple, but it was gone. The lavender dragon considered the matter a bit more. But, the subject was dropped as Helena nudged him sharply with her tail. Icarus bowed to his mate's wishes and he forgot all about the purple gi of the boy who had once been his friend. 

~*~

Gohan lounged in a tree far from Icarus and his occupation. Cassias and Whey were circling around each other, growling in an inarticulate conversation that reminded Gohan vaguely of the Saiyago his (uncle?) Turles hissed at him whenever Gohan ripped a monkeyshine on him or on Radditz. Gohan could only guess what those words could be, but considering that Turles was a has-been evil villain and that Radditz seemed to agree with his language, those words couldn't be worth knowing at all. 

To the extremely curious (and stupid in the language of common sense) person just passing by, the wolf and the saber-toothed tiger seemed like they were preparing to fight. Alas, but Gohan knew what his friends were up to. They were simply having a non-violent conference on territory and boundaries and all that jazz. 

Gohan sighed to himself. _Seems that everyone's too busy today. Well then, I'll just have to find someway to make myself entertained, ne? Like Ron always says, when in Vinolia, do what the Vinolians do. _(Let's see if you can find out where dat came from, eh?)

Gohan stood up on his branch, expertly manipulating the tree so that it didn't move with his motion. The demi-Saiyan took one step forward into the effervescent ground surrounding him and disappeared into thin air. 

~*~

There was the rock into which a bug android had been thrown by a lucky punch from SS Goku. There was the singe mark Cell's blast had made as it had pierced Mirai Trunks' heart. There was the bluff that Gohan had stood on along with the Z-senshi as they had prepared themselves to battle for the Earth for one last time. There was the profile marker that had been made by a certain Saiyan Prince while a certain eleven-year-old demi-Saiyan had risked his left arm for him. The profile had worn away, but it was so ingrained into the rock that no amount of eroding would erase it, except if the mountain was completely eradicated itself. 

And finally, there was the crater. The crater that two Super Kamehamehas clashing against each other had wrought into the ground's core so deeply. The even deeper crater on the side of the crater farthest from the mountain where Cell the bug android 24 years from the future had been erased, extirpated, exterminated, expelled for all time by Gohan the Saiyan Warrior. The one that Gohan had considered collapsing into, but never got the chance. 

Gohan himself sat with one knee across the other. His left arm was across his lap and his right elbow was resting on the forearm of the left. In his right hand roosted the ever-so-mighty chin and the Thinker's expression latched firmly onto the half-Saiyan's features. 

He sat there and reflected about the good and the bad, mostly bad, of the Cell Games. He even thought about his father's sacrifice, but this time he looked at the memory with only regret and sadness. No insane need to blame himself for that event followed. He had gotten over that a long time ago. 

That was how Goten found his angel, just sitting there staring at nothing. Goten, being the not-so-naïve four-year-old toddler he was, had an idea of what Gohan was doing here. The chibi doppelganger of Goku decided to ask anyway. 

Dropping his bag of Bulma's notes, Goten walked over to Gohan and jumped into his lap. Gohan was momentarily caught off guard, but he kept Goten from falling off. The brothers untangled themselves and smiled™ at each other. 

Gohan said, "Hey squirt. I should have known you would do something like that." 

Goten scratched the back of his head and Grinned™. "Sorry niisan." Gohan smirked. He raised an eyebrow as his smirk grew wider. Positioning himself, Gohan waited for a juicy opportunity to do what he had in mind to open up. Seeing it, the eldest demi-Saiyan pounced. 

Goten exploded in a fit of giggles as his brother tickled him. "Hahahaha stoppit Gohan! Hahahahaha! Please! Hahaha!" 

Gohan grinned zealously and said, "Say it! Say the magic words!" 

Goten rolled onto his side. "No!" 

Gohan doubled his efforts. Goten gasped wide and his laughter sang out of his mouth, accompanied by chords of tears streaming anime style down his cheeks. 

"All right, all right!" Gohan let up a bit on his tickling, a bit being the key words here. 

Goten panted out, "Gohan is the supreme master of the…dirt!"

Gohan gasped in muck indignation. "Why, you!" He leaped on Goten again and they wrestled briefly, rolling over each other once or twice before Gohan pinned Goten to the ground. Gohan let Goten push him off, unfolding his entire length out on the dusty ground. 

Both brothers were laughing between light puffs and gasps for air. Goten calmed down first, succeeded closely by his brother. 

They were still breathing irregularly from their *exercise*. But Goten asked Gohan, "Hey Gohan?" 

"Hmm?" came the reply from a close-eyed demi-Saiyan. 

"What were you doing when I found you? You know, before I jumped into your lap?" 

Gohan opened his eyes as he considered his options. To answer or not to answer? That was the question. 

"I was remembering." Gohan said finally. 

"Good memories?" 

"Not really." 

"Oh." Pause. "Wanna talk about 'em?" 

Gohan smiled. Goten was reminding him more of himself everyday. Which is not necessarily a good thing sometimes. 

"Nah. I'm done with them." 

"Oh, okay." Another pause. "Why were you remembering them then?" 

Gohan smiled again, a bit more sadly than before. "I guess you could say I'm making my peace with those memories for once and for all." 

Goten's smile could be heard in his bright voice. "Oh okay. That's fine with me." 

Gohan smiled too. He then thought a single word to the North Kaio and the Grand Kaio. 

Thanks…

~*~

North Kaio grinned to himself. He exclaimed, "Hey, Gohan, you're welcome. Although I don't exactly know why you're thanking me. You did this yourself. I had nothing to do with it." 

——

Sunglasses reflected the harsh light of a certain palace. A dry laugh and a slap on a jeans-clad knee resounded in an uncomfortably small personal room. 

"Northie is righ' fer once. Ye did the whole thang yerself, yung un'. For that ye are to be commended." Grand Kaio returned. 

Gray fingers fumbled with a gold trinket. "Now if only Ai can get thi' stupi' locket open so tha' Ai can get me otha' pair o' sunglasses."(1) 

~*~

Gohan sat up and rubbed his eyes. Goten bounced up too, ready to do anything his brother wanted to do. Gohan cocked a brow at lil bro's antics. A glance around the area revealed a forlorn looking red backpack neatly zipped and arranged. Goten followed Gohan's pointed gaze and spotted the offending thing also. But the youngest Son flapped a hand dismissively at the school item. 

"Oh that. I already did the work in that. It was no biggie."

Gohan's eyes crinkled into almost nothing as the Great Son Gohan Grin™ made its reappearance. Gohan pushed himself off the dusty ground and swiped at the dirt and dust on his gi. Goten skipped over to the backpack and skimmed back to Gohan, where the chibi got a dusting over himself. 

Finally ready, the Go-brothers turned their backs on the egregious sight of the Cell Games desert and walked away. 

"So lil bro, what do you want to do now?" Gohan's strong voice floated on the uplifting breeze. Goten's soprano voice joined it on the unseen river of air. 

"Oh I don't know. What do you want to do?" 

"Hey why don't I start teaching you how to spar?" 

The light of Gohan's life brightened up like a lighthouse suddenly turned on in the middle of a ferocious storm. 

"Yeah! That'd be so cool. I'd be able to keep up with Trunks! This will be so cool!" 

The Go-brothers sped away. Gohan paused and looked back. He could see the raven-haired girl darting from her previous spot to the one where he and Goten had lain in the sandy earth.

She bent down to examine the outlines, outlines that had been scuffed out by the Kami-sent breeze. One of the outlines, anyway. Goten's still showed clearly. 

Gohan turned away and caught up with an impatient Goten. Elder Grinned™ at younger and said, "Let's get out of here, otouto." 

~*~

A/n: Blaaah! It seems that people smile a lot in this fic. Too much, if you ask me. 

Aline: Ah, but I didn't ask you, now did I?

Aline, get out of here. 

Aline: No. 

Now. 

Aline: Not listening. 

Well then, I'm going to have to change that, now won't I? 

Aline: *Eyes widen* You wouldn't. 

You picked a really bad time to mess with me today. 

  
Aline: AHH! It's _The Return of Lady Macbeth_, Act I, Scene 4! (Insider's joke)

*Brings up hands and charges up ki* *Releases ki* **_COSMO LASER BEAM!!!_**

Aline: NOOOO! *Runs away with Cosmo Laser Beam tailing her* ARRRRRRRRRGH! 

That's that. *Wipes hands* 

~*~

Translations:

Niisan: older brother (like "Hi big brother!") 

Kaio: Kai

Otouto: younger brother ("Hey, lil bro.") 

~*~

(1) AHH!! The Evil Hard To Do Accent Disease is out to get everyone! TAKE COVER! No offense is meant to any Southerners in the US of A. ^^

~*~

Thanx to **chaosblizzard**, **DBZ Chick1**, **simba_rulz**, **SSJ5Tigger**, **Shin Tiara**, and **Nooka** for their reviews! 

****

Chaosblizzard: Read and see the answer to your questions. 

REVIEW! 

Don't remember bad things! 

AAS

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	9. Chapter the Eighth: Guidings

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Eighth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Haha very funny. Oh and btw ha. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: **Vigilante Angel **from **AASN** is back on track! Now let's roll every1! Listen up, it's a pretty short chappie. My reason just might be that I haven't had time to plan this, and/or I'm feeling a bit hyper today. You'll see what I mean at the, oops I said too much already. Hey, just read! Welcome to the eighth chapter of **Vigilante Angel**! (Wow, I'm catching up with my other fic, **Kakkhan: Giendonese Saiyan Warrior**! Gotta get working!) 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

[10 months later: Five Years After Cell] 

Gohan watched Goten with a proud smile on his face. Goten was currently singing, "Goten's a birdie, Goten's a birdie!" (Let's see if you can guess what just 'appened!) 

Within only hours of his first lesson, Goten was zooming through the air like an eagle in the sky. Gohan flew along with him, circling under his otoutosan much like an imitation of the Nimbus. The Nimbus itself was streaking along with them, having been used as a launch pad for a young demi-Saiyan learning to fly. (Didya guess right? Well, no duh!) 

Gohan and Goten Grinned™ at the Nimbus as they zipped along. Nimbus chirruped cheerfully in the air as they went over mountains and acres after acres after acres of fields and forests and every type of terrain imaginable. Well, except for the Cell Games desert. Then again, we went over that last chappie, didn't we? On with the story. 

The Go-brothers waved goodbye to the Nimbus as they descended down on an empty desert filled with rocks just right for a good spar. It was far enough away from the Son house that Chichi wouldn't be able to feel any power-ups, but it was far enough that demi-Saiyans could hear Chichi's voice very faintly. Oh life is good with Saiyan hearing. 

Gohan and Goten landed lightly on the ground. With the power levels that they had control over, they had to. The Go-brothers slid into their fighting stances and faced off against each other. Goten had to correct his a little bit upon instruction from his niisan, but in only a year of sparring, the lil tyke was doing great! (A/n: Obvious here that Gohan has been spending waay too much time with Goku. Either that or I have been. Hehe ^^") 

Next thing we puny humans see, blurs are darting here and there, and sonic booms that would throw us on the ground holding our bloody ears are sounding off on the cacti and the rocks and the desert ground itself. The outcome of these thingies happening are cracks in the ground, cacti missing or slashed in two, rocks the same, and imaginary humans crouching low on the sandy earth. Not to mention the two demi-Saiyans that are the sources of these unnatural phenomena. They, too, were changing, but only so far as getting bruised, cut, torn, bloody, sweaty, tired, teary, dusty, sandy, dirty, pained, gritty, hungry, slower, more powerful, hungrier, more energized, heavy, exhausted, hungriest, Oof! 

Goten was laid out by an especially nasty roundhouse kick to his jaw. Panting, the littlest Saiyan strained to get up. He, like his hair, defied gravity yet again as he pulled himself together into one whole piece and stood oddly on the ground. His right leg felt like it was broken, his stomach was whining, his arms were as heavy as lead, his clothes were torn and covered with blood (of Gohan's or Goten's blood he couldn't tell), he was sweating heavily, and painful all over. Not only that, but there was sand in his left eye, he could barely hear, he couldn't smell anything, nor could he taste the fractured tooth in his mouth, but by Kami he could still touch! Oh, maybe not. Goten couldn't feel the sand under his feet, so there ruled out touch. (^^")

Goten peered through his right eye at Gohan, who was in a slightly better state. Gohan certainly didn't have the fractured tooth, nor did he have as much blood on his clothes, but the expression on his face clearly matched what Goten felt on the inside. Needless to say, Goten had the same expression. Now if only we invisible humans could see those expressions. Unfortunately, they're too far in the air to see. Wait, the AIR?!?! I thought they were on the ground!!!!

The Son brothers went at each other's throats again. Goten really was numb now, and his eyes were getting heavier and heavier… Sleep sounded good right about now. 

An uppercut and a karate chop quickly put an end to Goten's musings. Goten blinked rapidly and glared at an expectant Gohan. Getting peeved, Goten stepped back and locked his fists at his waist. Gohan landed apart from Goten and took in the stance, knowing immediately what Goten was doing. The question of the spar was, could Goten handle it?

~*~

A/n: AH! CLIFFHANGER!! Muahahahaha! What's Goten going to do that Gohan is worried his lil brother can't handle? Find out on the next installment of **Vigilante Angel **from** AASN**! Hahahahaha I can't believe that I actually pulled that monkeyshine off! Haha! This is my payback to all you authors out there for your evil, evil, EVIL cliffies! ARRRRGH! 

Aline: -_- Ohh boy. AAS has officially gone insane.

*In background* HAHAHAHAHAHAH! 

Aline: Hear what I mean?

Aleandra: Hey Aline, I resent that comment!

  
Sarienna: Oh, and why is that? We are actually insane. It's a surprise to me that people from the correctional facility haven't actually picked you two up, Aleandra and Alyra.

Alyra: Oyo, what about you Sarienna? 

Sarienna: -_- There's a reason our bio says that I am the sanest personality, Alyra. 

Alyra: WHAT?! WHERE?! *Goes off to see bio*

Aline & Sarienna: ^_- 

Alyra: *Comes back* Hehe, yeah I see now. Somehow I'm going to havta get that changed. 

Sarienna: *Eye twitches Vegeta-style* WHAT?! You wouldn't! 

Alyra: Watch me. *Smirks*

Sarienna: *Sneers* You know, I really liked you better when you were a mouse, Lira.

Alyra: *Gulps* Um, help Aleandra?

Aleandra: Eh, what? What's going on? 

Sarienna: **_COSMO LASER BEAM!_**

Alyra: EEG! *Cowers* Help me! 

Aleandra: Oyo! *Jumps in front of holographic Cosmo Laser Beam* *Gets hit* Huh? It didn't hurt!

Sarienna: Duh, it's holographic. 

Aline: *Smirks* Nice one, Sarienna. *Slaps Sari a low five* 

Alyra: *Taps fingers* *Singsong voice* Oh, Sarienna?

Sarienna: *Looks at Alyra* *Sees infamous AAS glare* *Swallows* I think I better get going. *RUNS*

Alyra: Oyo! Come back here you gaki! *Runs after*

Aleandra: *Carrying videotape recorder* Gotta run or else I'll miss this! *Jogs after fleeing duo*

Aline: *Waves* Bye! *Under breath* Thank Kami the impossible personalities are gone. 

Aleandra: *From far off* Did Aline just say something bad about us?

Aline: *Rolls eyes* Bye everyone. Don't forget to review. 

~*~

Translations:

Otoutosan: younger brother

Niisan: older brother (like "Hi big brother!") 

Gaki: brat

~*~

Many thanx to **SSJ5Tigger**, **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **Mayleesa**, **chaosblizzard**, **Nooka**, **simba_rulz**, and **DBZ Chick1**, for reviewing! 

REVIEW! 

Don't read any ficcies with too much of a cliffhanger! :p

AAS & Aline, from **AASN**. 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	10. Chapter the Ninth: Pounding

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Ninth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Takes Gohan's sword and brandishes the blade at whoever thinks AAS actually owns DBZ* That enough of a disclaimer for you? I don't make any money off this fanfiction either, so there! *Gets sword taken away* Waah! I liked the feel of that in my hand! *Pouts*

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: The _ninth_** Vigilante Angel **chapter! Wow, we're really coming along in chappies here! And I don't even think about the chapters! They just roll onto me accompanied by extreme pain from Aline's slaps! Gee willikers! 

Aline: Aw how sweet. You totally love my slaps. I feel so appreciated. 

*Curls lip at Aline's sugar sweet sarcasm* 

Aline: *Smiles sweetly*

I think I'm going to throw up. *Gags*

Aline: *Laughs* Oh, _that's_ nice. 

-_-* Glad you're happy. Now go away. 

Aline: Whatever the authoress says, I shall do. *Bows and goes away*

*Gags* Yecch. Whatever possesses Aline to do that stuff I hope will never come back. 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**, 

_An uppercut and a karate chop quickly put an end to Goten's musings. Goten blinked rapidly and glared at an expectant Gohan. Getting peeved, Goten stepped back and locked his fists at his waist. Gohan landed apart from Goten and took in the stance, knowing immediately what Goten was doing. The question of the spar was, could Goten handle it?_

[10 months later: Five Years After Cell] 

Gohan prepared himself to be able to protect his brother. He was worried that Goten couldn't handle what he was just about to go through, but there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Blazing golden fire shot up around the miniature form of Son Goku, almost obscuring the transformation within. To us humans staring in wide-eyed awe, we can't see anything. They're still too far in the air. But we can see that one of the little teeny tiny dots has suddenly turned yellow. That's all we can see. But that is enough for us to deduce the correct assumption. 

Gohan, however, wasn't fazed by the vagueness of the fire shield. He knew the appearance and effects of this power up by heart, having gone through three stages of it already. He could draw in his sleep the pupiless jade eyes, the yellow gold hair, the angry battle glance, and every minutia involved. But it was still a shock to him when the aura tapered off and his little brother was revealed (with Jules Asner :P). 

Son Goten of Son Goku and Son Chichi, brother to Son Gohan, was now a Super Saiyan. 

~*~

The last thing we humans ever knew before we all dropped into an abyss, two very angry-looking Super Saiyans were simply glaring at each other. Of course, by then, some of us had already fallen into the canyon created by Gohan's ground power-up, so some of us were a little distracted when the first punch was thrown. But, they weren't too distracted to hear the _thud_ of flesh upon flesh, boot upon cloth, boot upon flesh, and flesh upon cloth. It was a shot heard round the world. (Hehehe)

The next things in the fight we can only hear, entrapped as we are in the Grand Canyon-sized split in the earth. It's a little tight in here, but only those who are claustrophobic are having any real trouble. (Reviewer: HEY LET'S GET ON WITH THE FIGHT ALREADY! AAS: All right, all right!)

'Course, the flashes of the Super Saiyans as they come back and forth across the top of the crater gives us momentary glimpses into how the fight's going. I suddenly come up with a power of authors that I forgot a long time ago and lift us up into the air out of the cleft. (Relief to the claustrophobic ppl whew) Now we can see the battle clearly. 

Goten was valiantly striving, but Gohan was much stronger and much more in control of his power. Goten flew back chin up from an excellent punch. He foiled his thrown path by lifting up his chin (like they're supposed to do on DBZ but they never do) and flipping his body around to dig the balls of both of his feet and one hand into the ground, trying to slow his momentum. He did stop eventually, just not as soon as he hoped. 

Gohan appeared behind him and kicked him back into the air. (The air again. Ohh boy) We the humans (*Reviewer groans* AAS: :P) have to duck as Goten whooshes by. We have to duck again as Gohan jumps into the air and darts after Goten like a Saiyan bird. A few readers fall as I lose my concentration, resulting in my having to duck after them and take up a lot of space in my story. (Many sorries to Reviewer heh) 

After I retrieve the fallen readers, we return to the fight. Goten kicked back at Gohan's chest (ouch), sending his niisan a few feet back. However, a few feet was all Goten needed to sufficiently recover from his uncomfortable position. 

Gohan stood his guard. He was panting heavier than before, but still not as heavy as Goten. His clothes were torn (no to the hentais; I never write stuff like that) as in one sleeve was completely missing, the other was mere tatters, SHORT tatters, his gi was completely lacerated at both of the knees, his shoulders, and his undershirt wasn't holding up well either. His boots, well, one of the laces had become untied, but Gohan wasn't worried about that. Why should he when the whole boot had already come off? Yep, he had one shoe on and one shoe off. Like before the Super Saiyan transformations, he was bruised, cut, torn, bloody, sweaty, tired, teary, dusty, sandy, dirty, pained, gritty, hungry, heavy, and exhausted. But he was still standing. 

Goten on the other hand was a lot worse. (Still no to the hentais; I don't write stuff like that) He had no shirts whatsoever and his gi pants were more accurately described as shorts; both boots had walked off on their own, disgusted with the abuse they were receiving, and Goten's boxer underpants were peeking up and over his blue sash. He was also bruised, cut, torn, bloody, sweaty, tired, teary, sandy, dirty, pained, gritty, hungry, heavy, and exhausted, but no one had said he was beaten! By Kami no! 

Goten was again getting sleepy, the Super Saiyan level was hard for him to keep up for much longer. The end result was that he was slightly flickering from Super Saiyan to normal, SS, normal, SS, normal, SS, normal, SS, normal. Gohan, being the veteran he was, detected the slight change, smirked to himself. 

Elder started zooming around in the air, leaving afterimages. His plan was to keep moving around while Goten kept getting sleepier, then to make his move. The dead demi-Saiyan in question smirked to himself as he saw Goten's head bobbing up and down less and less frequently. When the otoutosan had one of his "down" phases, Gohan played his trump card. 

Gohan flashed forward and kicked Goten lightly in the neck. "Lightly" as in sending him all the way to the ground, past the indiscernible observers in the air, over the airplane roaring by, almost hitting that great big burd diving for its target, past the dinosaur, and straight into a cactus. Fortunately this cactus was not of the prickly type, so poor Goten didn't get any more injurious than he already was. 

Goten did flash out of Super Saiyan though. Gohan was out of his Super Saiyan state too, having the foresight not to taunt his brother with the control otouto so desperately needed over the Ascended Saiyan level. 

Gohan drifted down to Goten's level and helped him off the cactus. Goten cracked one stiff eye open at Gohan and closed it immediately. He opened his mouth and strained out, "Why can't I beat you?" 

Gohan chuckled. "Well lil brother, I've been doing this longer than you have. But you're doing great. I didn't even achieve Super Saiyan at your age. I was what, nine, ten? Nine, when I first went Super. So that's pretty impressive, squirt." 

Goten smiled sleepily as Gohan took off for Korin's Tower. "What's a Super Saiyan?" 

After only 5 minutes, 6 seconds, 7 milliseconds, and 1 nanosecond of fighting, the Go-brothers had beaten each other up so thoroughly and yet here they were talking to each other like the fight didn't matter. Which of course it didn't, but an outsider might find it outrageously ironic that Gohan is Goten's guardian angel and yet here he is pounding on him. But we DBZ fans know what it's all about. 

~*~

A/n: Ya know, "vigilante" is supposed to mean a person who kills bad people. Even tho those people are bad, it's still murder. Gohan hasn't done that yet. I wonder… (Insert evil, evil, EVIL laugh) Should I or should I not? I already know the answer but I wish to see thine opinions on the subject. In other words, REVIEW! 

~*~

Translations:

Niisan: older brother (as in "hi big brother!") 

Otoutosan: younger brother

Otouto: younger brother (as in "hey lil bro")

~*~

What's next chapter? You'll find out on the next installment of **Vigilante Angel**. 

All the thanx in the AAS **Vigilante Angel** world go to **SSJ5Tigger**, **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **Nooka**, **simba_rulz**, **DBZ Chick1**, and **Rarity 88 **for reviewing! 

REVIEW! 

AAS & Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	11. Chapter the Tenth: Linkage

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Tenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: We went over this. My ladies and my lords, must I? *Reviewers nod, giving strange looks at AAS* Oh all right. *Sighs* *Takes another deep breath* I DO NOT OWN DRAGONBALL Z! *Reviewers clap hands over ears and nod dizzily, eyes whirling anime-style* *Smiles satisfyingly*

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Whoopee doo! On to another chapter of **Vigilante Angel**! I have now officially passed **Kakkhan: Giendonese Saiyan Warrior**. This basically means that I will be focusing on this fic for a while, at least until I get to the real BIG plotline. THEN I probably will get my butt onto the Forum of Ideas for **Double Hate**, **K.K.: GSW**, and the new ficcy I'm working on. Buut, that new ficcy won't be up for quite a while, I'm determined to finish that story b4 I post it, aaaand finish this one too. So no worries about me slacking on **Vigilante Angel**. 

*Looks at above paragraph* Wow that's a lot of bold! *Sweatdrops roll down and author's and readers' faces*

On with the story! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

[Six Months Later: Five Years After Cell]

Goten sighed. He fiddled with his pencil, mindlessly twisting it in his fingers and watching slow spidery cracks appear in the pencil's covering. He became engrossed in the twisting and snapping of the writing instrument in his hands. So engrossed he jumped. 

"Whoa, squirt, you're going to get dizzy if you keep doing that." 

Gohan sat in Goten's window with his left forearm perched on his drawn-up left thigh while the other leg dangled down the wall. His right hand reached out and grabbed the pencil out of Goten's grasping fingers. Under Gohan's grip, despite the fact that Gohan was holding it as gently as he could, the lead simply gave up and shattered. 

Goten and Gohan looked at the fine yellow and graphite-colored ashes in Elder's hand and then looked at each other. 

Gohan said after a while, "That could have happened to your head." He struggled to keep a straight face as Goten's eyes bugged out in his skull. 

"Really?" 

Gohan snickered. "No, squirt! Saiyans' heads don't just burst from that kind of activity! It's the brain that does that!" 

Goten glowered. "From your reaction, I doubt that the brain does either." He said in his scientific way. 

Gohan raised an eyebrow at his bro's sudden mode change, but as he remembered what he himself went through, didn't question it. Instead he smiled and shrugged. "You got me there, bro. Now c'mon, let's get you outta here and away from any strenuous brain activities." 

Gohan snickered again as Goten pouted. Goten got up on the windowsill with Gohan. At the count of three, they both bolted away from the house and Chichi's potential wrath. 

~*~

Chichi lifted her head as she heard faintly the whish of curtains being blown away. She cocked her head again, listening for any other strange things coming from upstairs. Hearing none, Chichi got up and proceeded up the stairs. 

Prowling around, she peeked into her room. Nope, the curtains there didn't show any signs of the wind playing with them. The curtains weren't even loose. They were still tied into place. But if there had been a strong enough wind, the loops of the curtain would be lifting slightly. No evidence of that here. 

Chichi then sneaked into Gohan's room. Everything was exactly as Gohan had left it for that fatal day with Cell and his death. The books were still neatly aligned, the paperweights were holding down the tidily stacked extra papers, the pencils and pens in their proper containers furthermore, and the desk was immaculately swept clean of anything but a thin layer of dust that had collected for the week. Chichi resolved to herself that she was going to get out her feather duster and get that villainous dust off. She checked the draperies, but no movement. 

She moved on. 

Into the bathroom. Nope. In the alcove that Gohan sometimes had used for his studies. These days, it was mostly occupied by Chichi whenever the Cell Games anniversary came around or when Chichi just wanted to be by herself. But today she didn't want to be left alone. 

Chichi was about to go look in Goten's room when the phone rang. The Teflon pan-swinging "harpy" wife of Goku turned around and hastened down the stairs to the hallway. Locating the black implement, Chichi picked it up and spoke into it. 

"Son residence, Chichi speaking." 

"Hey Chichi! Do I have some exciting news for you!" 

"Bulma! What's going on?" 

Chichi was distracted for the afternoon by Bulma's relating of the news that she was working on an invention with which you could see and speak to certain members of the dead. Namely, Goku and Gohan. It was almost finished, Bulma just needed a little advice. Should it be holographic or an onscreen event? 

Chichi told Bulma she'd be over right away to look at the thingie. Hanging up the phone, Chichi rapidly packed a few things she would need. Namely, her frying pan of Armageddon for use against Vegeta, six sandwiches for her and Bulma (and one for Trunks too), a shawl for protection against the Nimbus' wind, and a large basket to carry the invention home in. She also quickly wrote a note for Goten so that he wouldn't worry when he saw she wasn't home. She wrote, 

__

Goten—

I'm going over to Bulma's today. I'll be back before 6 o' clock. There is plenty of food in the refrigerator if you're hungry. But don't clean it out! Be sure your work is done before six. Don't be worried if I take a little long to get back. 

Bye honey, 

Mommy

Regarding her handiwork, Chichi smiled with satisfaction and left the note on the kitchen table. Picking up her stuff, the mother waltzed out the door and soared away on the Nimbus cloud to Capsule.

  
~*~

Goten sat calmly and motionlessly. Opening his eyes, Goten ignored Gohan as he concentrated on the energy inside of him. Reaching slowly, Goten searched for his core of energy. 

Gohan watched Goten's ki respond to the nurturing care Goten was displaying in bringing it out. Although Goten was an expert already at using his ki, he needed to learn how to control it. How better than to start from square one? Gohan frowned a bit as Goten stumbled a bit, but Younger steadied himself and kept approaching. 

Goten dipped into his center and brought a tendril of seemingly endless energy out. Conveying the tendril out of inside himself, Goten formed a small ball in his hands. Gohan didn't move or say anything, just let Goten go on his own. 

Goten studied the orb of light as it flickered in his palms. Knowing what Gohan wanted him to do, Goten concentrated on steadying it out. But when he put too much energy in, Gohan tsked. Goten withdrew some ki at Gohan's orders. He continued withdrawing it until he thought that his own blast was steady enough and looked at Gohan. 

Gohan was smiling slightly. He nodded at his squirtmeister. Goten's face split into two with the Son Grin™ it was containing. Gohan smirked again and said into Goten's mind, Nice job. Now throw it at Trunks, and try to make it as controlled as possible. 

The eyes of Goten twinkled mischievously. Changing his position, Goten casually brought his arm back to throw his globe. 

Trunks had no idea what was coming. He had planned to creep up on Gohan and Goten, but he was met with the retaliation of a stinging sphere as it shot over Gohan's unmoving shoulder and straight into him. 

Trunks yelled in surprise when he got hit. He though that he had been really stealthy, even going so far as to suppress his ki as best as he could. So how had he been hit? 

Gohan leaned back and smirked at Trunks, the scar on his cheek centering up. Trunks was looking a little singed, but it was nothing compared to the priceless look of shock on his face. Goten was holding his hand over his mouth and holding in the laughter. 

"Hey Trunks. What's up, little man?" Gohan asked innocently. 

Trunks could only gape like a fish. Gohan's smirk grew a little wider. He got up and brushed his gi pants off. Goten followed suit. 

"So Trunks, I bet you're wondering what's going on, huh, huh, huh?" Goten Grinned™. Gohan scrunched down his brows and looked at his little brother disdainfully at his childlike behavior. He shook his head and unscrewed his eyebrows from their place. (That's a funny image—unscrewing your eyebrows ^_^) 

Saving Trunks from having to mouth his surprise wordlessly, Goten bounced up and down. "Gohan is teaching me how to control my ki! He says I'm doing really good!" 

Gohan came into the fray with, "You're good at suppressing your ki, but you could be better. I don't think even Mr. Popo could have missed your approach, noisy as you were." Gohan grinned at Trunks as the latter's mouth shut closed and a haughty look crossed his face. Trunks sniffed at Gohan's insult, reminding Gohan very much of Vegeta. Of course—Vegeta _was_ the gaki's otousan. He privately thought an apology to Dende about the use of Kami's guide in an insult. Dende heard, shook his head, but forgave him. 

"Hmpf. I will not take any petty insults from you third class bakas. But I will show you _real_ control over ki." 

Trunks brought his hands up and slowly charged up his ki. Gohan and Goten's eyes widened for two very differential reasons. Gohan, because he knew what Trunks was doing and hoped that the little demi-Saiyan prince could handle his ambitious plan. Goten, because he had never seen Trunks do this before, and this was all a wonder to him. 

Trunks yelled, his ki charged up at last, "GALLIC GUN FIRE!" Trunks' Gallic Gun streamed from his hands to a rock the demi-prince had chosen for target practice. But as this was only Trunks' second time using this precarious weapon, his aim was a little off. 

The Gunshot missed the rock and shot off a tree and rocketed into the air, almost knocking the fleeing Chichi off the Nimbus. While Chichi looked around and blinked in confusion, (secretly drawing out her frying pan of Armageddon in case she needed it), Trunks was laughing nervously as Goten Grinned™ at him. Gohan was rolling his eyes in exasperation of the Vegeta's-ego-raised-child's botched plan. Landing his eyes on the kid in question, Gohan proceeded to give him a very calm and very lesson-giving telling off.

"DO YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF THERE HAD BEEN ANY HUMANS NEARBY?! YOU COULD HAVE BLOWN THEIR HEADS OFF WITH THAT! ALL RIGHT?!?!" 

Trunks nodded quickly, no remorse for his action showing on his face. Gohan reflected that Vegeta was raising his son well before he proceeded to ask in a more unruffled voice, 

"That try could have been worse. Now I noticed that you had at least 5% control over it, so you must have done it before. Did you?" 

Trunks nodded. "Only once though." 

"From watching Vegeta use it?" 

"Yep." 

"Hmm. Well, I guess I can teach you too about controlling ki before you move on to the bigger stuff. It'll certainly save your life in a real battle, Trunks," he added as Trunks sagged and blew his hair out of his clear eyes in a real teenagerly way. 

Once he was sure that Trunks and Goten could control their ki properly, then Gohan allowed them to use ki blasts. But only the sort that was the basic norm for any fighter, an Energy Bomb. 

Trunks, fed up with the slow pace with which Gohan was going, got up and angrily told Gohan, "Gohan, I know this stuff already! I can even do this!" 

With a flash, the second-born demi-Saiyan turned into a Super Saiyan. Flaxen fire erupted around Trunks as he raised his fists to welcome more power. Blue eyes darkened to the color of emerald and the face in which they housed in hardened in preparation for war. 

Gohan wasn't really startled by the change; he had figured that since Goten had transformed six months ago, Trunks, being a year older, would obviously have found a way to do so too. Gohan would have been genuinely surprised if Trunks hadn't. 

With a bound, Goten Grinned™ at Trunks and said, "I can do that too!" 

Trunks made a face at Goten. "Dummy, don't you know it's bad if you lie?" 

Goten wagged a finger. "But I'm not lying! I can really do it!" 

Trunks settled back on his right leg and crossed his arms, a skeptical look in his jade eyes. "All right, let's see it." 

Goten nodded and prepared himself. His ki spiked, as did his hair. His eyes turned cool green, and his face became more warrior-like in its pointed glance. His gi ruffled in the wind of his power-up, his transformation being every bit as impressive as Trunks'. 

Trunks and Goten stared at each other in mock battle. Gohan, sensing the tension might erupt into a not-so-friendly spar, remarked off-handedly, "Looks like I better join the club." 

More aureate fire later, a souped-up Gohan turned his sparkling jadestone glare upon the hapless demi-Saiyans, whose power level was pint-sized next to Gohan's controlled well of force. Trunks laughed nervously again and powered down, his spiky strands flopping down as they lost the energy needed to stay upright. Goten Grinned™ at Gohan before powering down too. Gohan, however, remained as he was. Now the demi-Saiyans looked even more Lilliputian next to him. 

Gohan eventually powered down as time wore on. Trunks left for the promised beating that his father had threatened him with earlier in the day. Gohan taught Goten the Kamehameha Wave, but only when Gohan had thoroughly threatened Goten with no food and no rests during training if he even formed a Kamehameha without Gohan there. 

Goten watched Gohan leave with his mouth gasping wide and his eyes wide with terror. Gohan waved with three fingers and Kai transmitted outta there, ending their daily session for the day. 

Stomach rumbled, so Goten temporarily forgot about Gohan's threats and skipped onto home. 

Breezing into his home, Goten found his mother's note. His eyes widened again and the youngest Son male dashed upstairs. He quickly looked around frantically for his pencil, remembered something vague, and grabbed another one. Drawing out his papers, Goten bent over his work. 

~*~

Chichi came into the Son household to find Goten eating a huge snack of thirty-and-one plates of chocolate chip cookies. She set down her basket with Bulma's invention and asked Goten in with a sharp voice, "Goten! Did you finish your studies?" 

Goten Grinned™ cheerily at his "temptress" for a mother and nodded bird-like before he retreated back to gobbling up his food. Chichi watched Goten for a while, her black eyes narrowing, before smiling and giving Goten another plate of cookies. Goten started in on it, hungrily devouring the contents. His eyes twinkled with the secret knowledge of the truth. Thank Kami for telepathic bonds, especially one with a certain guardian angel.

~*~

A/n: :D I loved writing that last sentence. 

~*~

Translations:

Gaki: brat

Otousan: father

Baka: idiot, fool

~*~

So what's next? Find out, only on **Vigilante Angel**, from **AASN**. 

¡ Muchas gracias van a **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **Mayleesa**, **simba_rulz**, **DBZ Chick1**, **chaosblizzard**, y **Silvertress**! 

REVIEW! 

Don't stay out too long! 

AAS 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more. 


	12. Chapter the Eleventh: Chronicles

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Eleventh

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Riiiiiiiiiight. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Oh my Kami. OVER SIXTY REVIEWS! I'm gonna jump through the ceiling for joy! YES! I feel SO loved! 

Aline: I do have to admit that 64 reviews _are_ impressive. 

Thanx Aline. 

Aline: Can you believe this is actually the eleventh chapter and you haven't even gotten—

Can it! 

Aline: *Shuts up*

You're supposed to be the muse of this story, not the blabbermouth! Good golly miz molly! 

Aline: *Looks sheepish* Oh, yeah. I suppose I was about to give it away, wasn't I? 

-_- Yes. And you're about to give it away now. 

Aline: O.o Guess I'd better leave then, eh? 

Yeppers. 

Aline: All right! Ja ne! 

-_^ Ja ne. *Aline leaves* Good timing. For it's—

On with the story! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far: 

__

"Thank Kami for telepathic bonds, especially one with a certain guardian angel."

—End of Chapter the Tenth__

~*~

[One Year Later: Six Years After Cell]

Goku sighed. He was looking for his son, but he couldn't quite get to him. he had had no problem locking on Gohan's ki, it was just the place where Gohan's ki was that posed a problem. 

Goku stood before a gray mountain brooding over the world's miseries. Well, the world of the dead, anyway. Gohan's ki was positioned inside of the mountain on the upper east corner from where Goku was standing. Luckily for Goku, Gohan wasn't going anywhere. 

Goku scratched his head. He was sure that however Gohan had gotten into the mountain, the way was twisted and labyrinthal. Gohan was with some fighters of the Otherworld, but it wasn't apparent that Gohan was doing the fighting. The three other kis Gohan was with, two of them were moving around at extreme speeds to a human. The other ki was moving, but Goku guessed that was because the owner of the ki wanted to stay out of the way of the other two. 

Goku tilted his head to one side. Gohan was moving now, but not to move away from the fighters. Instead, Gohan seemed to be going somewhere of his own free will. 

Suddenly Goku's son's ki winked out briefly, then reappeared right behind Goku. 

"Hey Dad. What's up?" 

Goku started. He turned around and Grinned™ sheepishly at his son. The halo above his head twinkled a greeting to Gohan's halo, which sparkled in return, signaling their familial relationship. 

"Hi Gohan! I was looking for you to see if maybe you wanted to spar." (Oh Goku, Goku, Goku, what are we going to do with your Saiyan lust for battle?) 

Gohan quirked an eyebrow but nodded. "Sure. But let's wait until Fon, Ton, and Lon figure out that I'm not even in the same mountain with them." 

Just as Gohan finished speaking, Lon poked his blue-skinned head out of a hole he had created in the slope. 

"Yo Gohan! You going to fill in for Ton as ref still?" 

Ton and Fon appeared, Ton's red and Fon's purple's skins contrasting heavily with Lon's blue. 

"Yeah! Am I going to have to feel helpless again just because you're a better ref than I am?" Ton complained. 

Lon shoved Ton roughly. "It's because you're such a lousy ref that Gohan is better than you, not Gohan himself!" 

Fon rolled his eyes. He grabbed Lon and Ton and banged their heads together. Lon and Ton yowled, holding their heads and glowering at Fon. (Remind you of the Three Stooges, don't they?) 

Fon sneered at his two other destined brethren and turned to Gohan.

"Go 'head kiddo. I'll take care a these two." 

Gohan Grinned™ and gave a thumbs-up to the purple-skinned leader. Gohan looked at Goku and nodded. The two Sons stood side by side for one breathless moment before they raced away faster than the speed of sound. 

Gohan sprinted along, enjoying the fact that for once he didn't have to worry about regulating his speed to match someone else's. In fact, Gohan actually surprised Goku with his speed; Goku hadn't thought about what his son might have been doing while not around him. 

Goku glanced at the gleaming sword buckled to Gohan's back. It glittered at him, a promise of what was to come. Goku turned his head again and asked Gohan, "I hope you're not using that sword in our spar." 

Coal-black eyes looked at him from under a long forelock of black mane. They gave unto Goku a patiently amused look before they slid back to the path less traveled. 

"Of course not, Dad. I don't use Arikeru against someone who doesn't know how to defend himself against a sword."

Goku grinned. "But would you use it if I had my Power Pole?" 

Gohan looked at Goku. "Wouldn't a sword crack against that?" 

Goku shrugged, an easy feat for the Saiyan to do while still running at speeds of over at least 738 miles per hour. Gohan mulled it over. Arikeru was a strong sword, forged from one of the best quality metals of the Osi siblings' planets. But the Power Pole had decimated many swords in its lifetime, especially when Goku was much, much younger, and Gohan wasn't sure that Arikeru could stand up to the Power Pole. 

Goku called, "Hey King Kai!", bringing Gohan to the abrupt conclusion that he would try it. He slid to a stop just behind North Kaio's black-clad back. 

North turned around to see the sight of the sheepish Gohan with a sword on his back and a trail of dug-up dirt following Gohan. Goku waved on the sidelines. Goku came forward and asked, "King Kai, can I get the Power Pole?" 

North blinked and asked, "Why do you want to use that thing up here?" 

"Gohan and I are going to spar." 

North looked at Gohan for more information. Gohan sighed. "Dad wants the Power Pole so that he can see my skills with Arikeru." The guardian nodded to his sword. North's stringy eyebrows rose in interest. His antennae twisted in concentration before straightening out with a _thwish_. A _pop!_ sounded, and there appeared in the air, Goku's beloved Power Pole. 

North sent the Pole to its original master. Goku grasped it and smiled; it had been so long since he last held the Power Pole that he had forgotten how it felt in his hands. Goku backed away as he started twirling it familiarly with one hand. 

Gohan at one point jumped into Goku's pattern. Goku smiled challengingly at Gohan, which he returned with a smirk. Father and son continued their swirls and whirls, each studying the other for potential weaknesses to use in the battle ahead. 

Then an unseen signal prompted both Goku and Gohan apart. Another signal not foretold clanged Arikeru and Pole off of each other. Gohan swung the sword off his shoulder and stabbed at his dad. Goku blocked and lunged in with the Pole, aiming for Gohan's abs. Gohan sidestepped neatly, bringing Arikeru down on the red staff. Goku strained to bring the Pole out of Arikeru's grasp, but Gohan had been in this position often enough to restrain that movement with as much minimum amount of effort as possible. It was kind of easier to do this with Goku than it was with the Osi sibs, even though Goku was indeed stronger than both of them at level mid-SS2. The Osi sibs knew clever ways to keep Gohan off guard; Goku hadn't even used the Power Pole for a long time. Not since before Frieza. 

Gohan finally had mercy on his dad and allowed the restraint to be broken. He snapped up his blade and casually slicked Arikeru just inches clear of Goku's chest, keeping Goku off guard. Goku stumbled back, the Saiyan being surprised by Gohan's sneak attack. He never really got a chance to recover. 

While Gohan and Goku were sparring, North Kaio was watching. Silently he was thinking to himself, _Hmm, Gohan's much better at handling Arikeru than I thought he would be. Those people incoming had best watch their step, for the wrath of one very skilled swordsman is coming after them._

North smiled grimly to himself. Seven of the universe's most wanted criminals were going to find themselves in a big pickle very soon. 

~*~  


"So Gohan, where do you go everyday?" 

Gohan didn't lose a single step. He blocked the Pole from coming on his head with his left forearm and slashed Arikeru at his father, which he blocked with a slight effort. 

"What do you mean, where do I go everyday?" 

Goku turned his body sideways to narrowly avoid another sneaky sword swipe. Goku panted a bit as he lunged again at Gohan. Gohan dodged Goku's lunge and followed up with a nasty backhand that thwacked Goku across the face and left a huge swelling. 

Goku fell back. He stopped himself and looked up at the fallen warrior that was his son. Gohan held Arikeru in a defensive stance born from almost six years of practice. Even the way Gohan stood normally told that he was both a skilled fighter and swordsman in one. 

"You know what I mean Gohan. I know you go down to the Living World on Earth. I've felt your ki down there with Trunks and someone else. So where do you go every day?" 

Goku jammed his Power Pole into the guard of Arikeru's hilt. Gohan put gradual pressure on the Pole until it was resting completely on the Saiyan's chest. Father and son were face to face, straining against each other in the midst of battle. Desperate red heaved against amused steel as one warrior struggled lightly to reverse his situation. 

Gohan said, his words muffled slightly, "Spying on your son is not a healthy past time, Dad." 

Goku managed a split-second smile at his son's obvious humor. 

"It is when the son's been doing something suspicious for the past three, four years," came the retort. 

Gohan suddenly flipped Arikeru, unjamming it and bringing Goku under its quivering point. 

A few yards away the Power Pole stuck firmly into the ground, the other end waving dangerously and enormously back and forth. 

Goku yielded, both hands thrown up in surrender. Gohan smirked, enjoying his temporary authority over his father. 

"Very perceptive of you, Dad. I almost didn't expect you to notice I was gone from Other World." 

Taking away the point of his sword, Gohan sheathed Arikeru. He helped his father up from his uncomfortable position, unconsciously steeling himself against any monkey business like the Osi sibs pulled on him all the time. They retrieved the Power Pole from the ground and sat down near North Kaio. 

"All right Dad. Okay, I have a little brother now—"

"What! You mean Chichi had another son?!" Goku exclaimed. 

Gohan nodded and worked around his father's gobsmacked look. "Yeah. He was born after you and I died and decided to stay here. But first, do you remember when we first came here and we learned that Cell was in HFIL?" Goku nodded. 

"King Kai held me back and offered me the position of being a guardian angel over Goten. That's my otouto's name, Goten," Gohan clarified for his father, "and I really didn't have a choice but to accept it, of course. That was six years ago. I've been Goten's guardian angel since he was two weeks old, ever since he had a terrific nightmare that I couldn't wake him out of. I contacted Mom through telepathy and she woke up Goten after a while. He didn't go back to sleep for another long time either. But Goten finally did and that's that." 

Goku looked confused. (What a surprise!) "Wait, let me get this straight. I have a second son who's your brother." Gohan nodded. 

"And you've been his guardian angel for six years?" 

"Yes. He's six now too," added the eldest of the second-generation Son brothers. 

"Okay. So if you've been his guardian for six years, how come I've only felt you going for four?" Goku asked, scratching his head.

Gohan answered patiently, "I didn't start visiting him everyday until he was two years old. Before then, I only visited him at random times. That's why."

"Ohh. Okay, that clears things up. Great. Okay, so how's he been doing?" 

Gohan Grinned™. He loved talking about his otoutosan any time anywhere. 

"Goten's a Super Saiyan now." Goku, again, was blown away. "WHAT?! Really?!" 

"Yep. He's actually been a Super Saiyan for a year now, ever since he was five." Gohan laughed. 

"Whoa! How'd that happen?" Goku cried. 

So Gohan and Goku whiled the time away talking about the six-year addition to the Son family. It was a lot later in the day when Gohan finally stood up and brushed off his pants. 

"Well, Dad, I'm going to spend my daily community service time with Goten now." he said. 

Goku nodded. "Okay, Gohan. Be sure to keep him from getting in any trouble that might cost him his life!" 

Gohan rolled his eyes wryly. "Yes Dad, I most certainly will." Goku Grinned™ and waved his disappearing son off. He watched the effects of Instant Transmission take Gohan away before he turned to North Kaio.

"Chichi?!" Goku yelled. 

~*~

Gohan was going on a full half-hour of playing with Goten and Trunks, if you didn't count the homework hour both of the younger demi-Saiyans had, when seven something's zoomed through the shadows. 

~*~

A/n: Ooh lala! Got a real cliffie this time! Muahaha! Although I probably already gave you a clue of what's gonna happen, YOU don't know the full details. _I_ do! Muahaha! 

Aline: Ya know, I think she's getting more like me everyday. 

That's your fault Aline. _You're_ the one hanging around _me_ too much. Oh, and zip it! 

Aline: *clams up*

Thank you. You were about to give away info again, weren't you, my dear? 

Aline: *nods sheepishly*

What I thought. Now let's go, let's go, let's go! 

Aline: Where?

To the next chapter, duh! Where else, stupid?

Aline: Hmpf. I'm going to pay you back for that insult, missy. 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'll worry about that when I get the slap, muse. 

Aline: Yes, you most certainly will. Muahaha! 

Yep, jest like I said. She's been hanging around me too much. Now she's starting to rub off on me. Yep. *Nods* 

Aline: *Laughing maniacally* 

^_-;; See what I mean? 

~*~

Translations:

Kaio: Kai

Otouto: younger bro (informal, as in "hey lil bro") 

Otoutosan: younger brother (formal)

~*~

Thanx to **DBZ Chick1**, **Nooka**, **shadowphoenix2**, **Mayleesa**, and **Silvertress** for taking the time to review! U guys are my fave peeps right now! 

So what's gonna happen? Find out, only on **Vigilante Angel**, from **AASN**. 

NO hanging around insane muses! I absolutely FORBID you authors (aspiring) to do so! (:P)

AAS 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.

REVIEW! 


	13. Chapter the Twelfth: Vigilante

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twelfth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Words "LEAVE ME ALONE" painted erratically across brick wall in blood* That good enough for ya? 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Wow! It's Halloween! Translated, DOUBLE CHAP UPDATE! WHOOPEE! BUT, I'm not doing this sort of thing for every holiday, just this one, because next chappie is a sort of surprise that I want you ALL to see…

Aline: Basically she wants everyone to know _exactly_ how insane she is.

Yep! *Blinks* HEY!

Aline: :P

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far: 

__

"Thank Kami for telepathic bonds, especially one with a certain guardian angel."

—End of Chapter the Tenth__

~*~

Last time, on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

Goku Grinned™ and waved his disappearing son off. He watched the effects of Instant Transmission take Gohan away before he turned to North Kaio.

"Chichi?!" Goku yelled. 

Gohan was going on a full half-hour of playing with Goten and Trunks, if you didn't count the homework hour both of the younger demi-Saiyans had, when seven something's zoomed through the shadows. 

~*~

[Same Time]

"Chichi?!" Goku yelled, shocked out of his skin for the third time that day. (LOL!) 

A light semi-transparent blue light in the form of a Earthling was standing before him and facing North Kaio. Although the blue light was semi-transparent, it was _very_ irrefutable who the image was of. (Think Star Wars.) 

Chichi turned around and spotted her husband. "Goku! There you are! And where's Gohan? I want to talk to him!" 

Goku responded, "You just missed him, Chi. He went to hang with his friends." scrupulously telling the truth, as usual. "But how did you get here?"

Chichi brightened up. "Bulma made an invention for me so that I could talk to you whenever I want! Isn't that so nice of Bulma?!" 

Goku hung his head internally as he and his wife sat down and started talking, well, mostly Chichi did, about this and that, small conversation, good enough for all but the most awkward of situations. 

~*~

Gohan, Trunks, and Goten froze all at the same time. Trunks started to ask, "What's that?," but Gohan shushed him. They listened sharply for any other noise or rustling. 

Their heads jerked sharply at the bushes to their left in the forest. Gohan called, his deep voice a menace to any enemies, "Come out, whoever you are! All of you!"

A hiss sounded from all around the trio, making the demi-Saiyans realize they were surrounded. Seven beings stepped out from their respective places around the clearing. Or as in the case of one, jumped down from a tree, and another, up from the ground itself. 

Gohan, from his travels in space, recognized these seven humanoids as space pirates and mercenaries. He narrowed his eyes, warning the cowboys not to step nearer. Goten and Trunks didn't know anything about these creepy humans except that they were not friendly. 

Suddenly, they all lunged. But Gohan had seen what they did, so he was prepared. But Goten and Trunks were taken by surprise. 

Gohan jutted his elbow into the jaw of one of the pirates and slammed his knee down onto the stomach of another. He crushed the heads of two others together and jumped onto the back of the mercenary he had just broken the jaw of. The two Gohan finished earlier leapt after him again, only to be met with two fingers apiece right between their eyes. The demi-Saiyan tapped them a bit more than he needed to, effectively sending them with his regards to King Yemma. 

Gohan didn't hesitate but jabbed his fist up and over his shoulder, twisting in an awesome feat a split-second later to follow the dude along his trajectory. The would-be killer looked up into the blazing obsidian of Gohan's eyes and at the deadly fist coming toward him. But that was not the last thing the 4'5" ninja saw before he died. Nay, the one thing that appeared to the legionnaire was a brief but brilliant shower of light, in which became imprinted a negative outline of a curious symbol. One that seemed to be a sideways figure eight with swirls twining gracefully onto the ends and a line slowly dissolving through the middle. 

The symbol blazed darkly at the ninja, reminiscent of a certain pair of eyes, before all went dark. 

~*~

"…bye Chi! I hope that invention of Bulma's lasts longer next time!" Goku said to the disappearing holo of his wife. Chichi had only managed to get the machination to work two and .435 hours, but much had been covered in that time. Mostly about what Gohan and Goku had been doing, did Goku know he had another son named Goten (at which Goku had to fake surprise somewhat, but Chichi didn't seem to notice that her husband's surprise was forced), and what Goten was doing. 

During that last topic, Goku had gotten bored and shifted his position all over the place. Chichi just rattled on, used to this kind of thing thanks to her two sons, especially her youngest. Goku hadn't thought Chichi's prattling on and on about the details would ever end, but luckily North Kaio had intervened through Kami and put a temporary malfunction into the small machine, causing Chichi's image to flicker precariously. And that was where Goku had picked up and sent Chichi on her protesting way back to Living Earth. 

Goku signed with relief. At least wen Gohan had told him about Goten, he had understood that Goku was N.I.D., **N**ot **I**nto **D**etails.* Gohan probably even felt that way himself. 

Goku perked up as he felt his stomach sigh. He looked hopefully at North Kaio, the latter of whom sighed deeply. Taking his cue, Goku shot up off the ground and dashed away to North's palace where food was a-calling. 

~*~

The four remaining space pirates had hauled away the yelping kids from the crime scene. The mission _had_ been to grab a couple of Earthling kids to recruit to their sorely diminishing crew, now depleted by three more members, and the pirates had indeed accomplished that. now if only they could get away from that teenage dude with his deadly fast fists and burning eyes. 

The bounty hunters considered themselves strong, but none of them were a match for the two children they struggled to hold. All the more reason why they were valuable. But there was such a thing as being too valuable. The kids constantly attacked them, effectively placing punches were they hurt. They even shot these killer heat balls that burned the space armor off and zapped heavily the fragile skin within. It was a near miracle that the picaroons managed to hang on at all. 

The killers scrambled away, not realizing that their fate had just been sealed at its worst. For a certain angel of protection and of vengeance had set his sights upon them. 

The buccaneers from outer space made their way in the not-too-distant city with a bit more ease, having stopped on the way to dose their captives with chloroform. Goten and Trunks needed two-thirds more than the normal dose for their age to make them fall, their hereditary Saiyan blood-boil battle rage was so strong. But yes, they did fall most grievously for their ambition at escape. 

The four survivors breathed a little easier as they moved into the city. Their guard was still up, their shifty human eyes tracking every movement, but they were relaxed. Their funeral. 

S2 turned to s5 to make a vulgar comment of sorts, but he never got to. Nor did s5 even get to notice. Steel flashed and cut, slashing merrily through flesh, muscle, bone, and millions of cells, ripping them open and terminating their life-span and usefulness. 

S2 and s5 crumpled, dropping the limp body of Trunks onto the ground. People screamed as their unseen assailant took down s6, splattering his blood everywhere on the sidewalk, on people's clothes, skin, and possessions, and on the office windows, shops, vendors, and open restaurant squares. One droplet even landed at the very base of a very prized monument of the treasured Gold Saiyan from the spiteful Cell Games. 

More blood splashed as s3 was suddenly beheaded and de-torso-ed. The head fell to the ground and bounced once, not having enough momentum to roll. The torso thudded to the ground as the stomach and kidneys spewed out of it. Half of the large and small intestines tumbled out of the still-standing pelvis and legs as they toppled slowly forward, falling like an echo of the Tower of Pisa at its last futile attempt to resist gravity. 

The dull "puh-uh" of the legs as they completed their unholy descent to the pavement of the sidewalk resounded hollowly in a frozen black-and-white modern-day horror-movie setting. 

People started moving again, but slowly, as if dazed. It was lucky that the massacre had taken only four of them, not wiping out an entire 2/5 approximate of the whole population of Cell City. (:P) Police arrived not long on the scene and gaped at the brutality of the murder victim's handling. Never had this kind of thing happened, ever, in the entire history of what was formerly Orange Star City. Especially not in broad daylight. 

But when the police questioned the dozens of eyewitnesses, they came up with rather puzzling answers. None of the witnesses had seen the killer; all said that the victims had split open without warning. One sharp-eyed woman claimed she had seen the flash of steel, but the police weren't taking her statement seriously. After all, who used swords anymore?

~*~

Gohan gently deposited the sleeping forms of Goten and Trunks on the grounds near the Son house where Chichi could easily spot them. he stepped back and regarded them affectionately as they sprawled all over each other in their sleep. 

Arikeru glinting on his back, Gohan took skyward after a long moment. After a brief word with Dende about the slayings, Gohan faded from the Living Earth to solidify in Other World. 

The demi-Saiyan had landed near one of King Yemma's ogres, who looked even dorkier out here than in the check-in station. His eyes were immediately drawn to the enormous load of papers and books weighing heavily in the ogre's arms, and sighed. 

Gohan never got a break from studying. 

~*~

A/n: Whew! Done at last! On to the next one! 

Aline: *Eating popcorn & watching latest **Vigilante Angel **installment on Video & DVD* Nice one, AAS. 

Thanx. Took me a whole five days to write. ^^;;

Aline: *Snickers*

*Face-faults* @_@

Aline: Haha! *Points at fallen AAS*

-_- How I ever got stuck with such as mean a muse as Aline I'll neva know. 

~*~

Translations:

Kaio: Kai

~*~

*Line from "The Wedding Planner" with Jennifer Lopez and Matthew what's-his-last-name. 

~*~

So what's next? Find out, only by clicking in, to the next chapter of **Vigilante Angel**. 

Don't be a **_vigilante_**,

AAS 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.


	14. Chapter the Thirteenth: Unbroken

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Thirteenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Scribbles on psychiatrist's notebook* Uh-huh. Are you sure about this? *Looks at reader, looks back at notebook* Okay… *Crosses out what previously wrote* New Diagnosis, you are not a believer any more. *Reader looks frantic* Don't be worried, THAT'S A GOOD THING!!! *Psychiatrist setting disappears and surroundings turn to normal* Now that that's over with… 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like "Blinded" by **dragonscales **and "Once Upon a Chibi" by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: *Rubs hands while cackling maniacally* THIS is the one I beseech thee all to read…

Enjoy the horrors which reside within! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far: 

__

"Thank Kami for telepathic bonds, especially one with a certain guardian angel."

—End of Chapter the Tenth__

~*~

[One Year Later: Seven Years After Cell]

A girl with her normally neat auburn hair all messed up and raggedy, proclaiming its state as neglected, stared at the walls of her room at the Institute for the Severely Traumatized (^^;;). She hugged herself as she rocked back and forth on her bed, back and forth, back and forth. She ignored the psychiatrist who was sitting in front of her, vainly try to get his patient to tell her secrets. But she was obstinate and stayed silent. 

The girl was left alone for an indeterminate amount of time, all of which she spent staring at the wall. The psychiatrist returned again this time with the girl's mother in tow. The mother in turn was carrying a platter of food handed to her morosely by one of the nurses. It was set on the same table as the untouched one from yesterday. The old one was taken to the morose nurse who carted it away like she was at a funeral. She might as well have been anyway. 

The girl's mother sat down on her child's bed and gripped the limp pale hand tightly, not entirely expecting a response. The psychiatrist leaned back in his chair next to the bed and sighed. This was going to be another long session. 

The girl did nothing. She was aware, slightly, of her mother and her incompetent therapist, but the wall was so entrancing, even if it did hurt her. (O.o)

The psychiatrist Dr. Ramon quietly tried to pry out of his frustrating patient the events of which had brought her here. She twitched irritably as the doctor brought his hand up in front of her face, blocking her view of the brightly colored wall before her. She shifted her eyes until they were back on the wall. 

The mother motioned for the mental doctor to let her try. Getting up, she crouched in front of her unmoving daughter and looked up wearily and sadly into her face. 

"Sweetie, I understand why you don't want to talk about it. But it's been a year. Surely you can tell us now?" she implored, staring appealingly into the girl's eyes. 

The blonde's only answer was a tilt of the raggedy head. The child's mother tried again, to get nothing as a response this time. She sighed in defeat, giving up and throwing in the towel for the day. 

Brown eyes steadily gazed at the wall still as their owner thought over slowly her mother's proposition. She just as swiftly discarded the notion. After all, who wants to tell about seeing bloodstains on the wall that changed patterns every day? Or about the horrid manslaughter a year ago on a visit to Cell City? Especially when she had been sworn to secrecy about it? 

::**_She had been stooping in a niche in an alley, gleefully hiding from her laughing friends. A Walkman CD player had been clutched in her long 15-year-old hands as she had leaned past her alcove to watch out for Stacie._**

What had happened next was too abominable for anybody, much less a fifteen-year-old, to see. Four strangely clad people carrying two kids her stepbrother's age had come by close to her hidden spot. Suddenly a blur had sped by and flittered away, leaving behind a slashed open s2 and a slit throated s5 to collapse right in front of her.

She froze as Death in the form of s2 stared her straight in the face, the glassy eyes and stringy blood streams creating a maelstrom of images made from the hellish stuff of nightmares enough to drive anyone insane at first sight. 

Another short glimpse of a blur and the other two people passed from life. But the teenager of robbed hope was not focussed on their deaths. She was instead gawking straight into the gentle face of the boy with the bloody sword in his right hand. Her eyes wide with terror, she watched him raise his left hand, slowly, as if in slow fast-forward. The index finger rose from the clump of limbs and landed on the swordsman's lips. 

She stared in startled confusion as she grasped the meaning of the gesture in full. The eyes of the boy, who was only a year or two older, crinkled in amusement as a ghost of a smirk flickered itself over her face. The smirk was infectious, drawing a smile and a nod from the auburn head. In one movement, the black haired boy both cleaned and sheathed his sword. In the next movement, he had picked up the two boys and disappeared, managing to keep out of the sight of the other civilians the whole while. 

The auburnette stayed in her niche until the police found her hours later going through severe shock. They had hauled her off to the IST, refusing any of the girl's friends or family access to her until she had been cleaned up and clothed better.

The police had told the people at the Institute what had happened. So now they knew. They just had to get the patient to tell them so she could heal and move on. If only it were that easy.::

The auburnette had been in shock not just because of the massacre. She relived the death of her parents at the hands of a certain grasshopper, and as well contemplated the identity of the swordsman. She knew him from somewhere in her already dreadful life, but where? These were the ingredients of insanity which had kept her in the Institute for more than a year, as well as her promise to the killer himself. 

The blood patterns shifted again, as if in answer to her thoughts. They started to form a character that was completely obscure to her until she figured out it was "rice". Another idea formed in her head as the wall swirled back into an image of her parents dead, and a bug android laughing insanely his head off. 

But for the first time in her life, she paid no attention to the images. She had just revealed _his_ identity to herself. 

The patient watched dully as the psychiatrist and her mother stood up and drifted into a corner, where they thought she couldn't hear them. True, her slow brain processed only snatches, but they were enough. 

"…anesthesia…under hypnosis…tomorrow, then…"

Mom was nodding reluctantly. Turning away, she hugged her non-responsive kid. Looking at her again, she stood up and went in slow motion out the door, never looking back, leaving her child with feelings of betrayal and deep hurt. Resentment boiled under the surface of those once-lively brown eyes and under her pale unhealthy skin. 

She made up her mind. 

:~*~:

The woman who belonged to the patient in 617 with messy brownish-red hair and who so dared to call herself the auburnette's mother, discussed quickly and anxiously with Dr. Ramon her precious child's treatment for that day. They walked down the hall past the open and closed doors of the other patients, ignoring the occasional screams and thuds that issued from them. They stopped before 617. Dr. Ramon departed for the Hypnosis room to make sure it was all set and ready to be used. 

But a shriek deterred him from his objective. Dr. Ramon rushed back to 617, almost tripping in his haste over the sobbing heap of the molten flesh and bone that was the mother. The doctor looked gape-jawed at the sight in the room, absolutely stone-cold-right-as-rain shocked. He had never thought that the resident of 617 would ever resort to this. She had been too strong in spirit, even as she stared at the wall all day, to let this happen. 

The auburnette's hair was lying in a pool around her head, even as a puddle of a darker red color slowly dried and crusted itself out from beneath it. Silver glass fell in shatters around her head and her hands. The limbs in question had also been losing the rich red oxygen carrier for a long time. Slits could be seen in both arms from the top of the biceps through the triceps all the way down to her wrists. But the most frightening sight was the one in which the girl had inflicted to her own head. She had dug a particularly vengeful mirror piece from her temple to the base of her neck on her left side, spilling out her throat and vocal cords, even letting a bit of skull show through. The odd thing about this situation was that the sufferer had a strangely appeased look on her face, as if she had wanted to do this badly for a long time. It was sick. 

The mother took her striped face out of her hands and lunged for her baby, held back only barely by the psychiatrist and that morose nurse. 

"No, don't be dead! This can't be happening!" she howled, her voice only a feral roar in the grief-constricted cords of her vocal parts. "No! I won't allow you to be dead!" She reached for her daughter another time as she was bodily taken away. 

"LIME!" 

~*~

A/n: Muahahaha! And just in time for Halloween! *Laughs crazily as the Grim Reaper claims Lime's soul* now Gohan can't get together with Lime! Sorryz to the guyz who wanted a Gh/L! 

Aline: 0_0 

*Teasingly* Whatsa matta, Aline? Didn't think Lime's suicide would be this gory or tearjerker? 

Aline: *Shakes head slowly*

Oy. Snap out of it. I know you have a question for me.

Aline: *Nods slowly* Who…gave…mirror…to Lime? 

Ohh. Great question Aline. One word. Morose. *Vampire grins as Famine of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse's laugh rings out* 

Aline: OMG, that (censored) central! 

Hey, watch your language! This is my masterpiece! 

Aline: *Murderous glare*

:P

Aline: *Pounces on authoress* I'm gonna kill you! 

Why should you? You came up with the idea! You slapped me with it!

Aline: *Subsides* Uh-oh… *Looks around, RUNS away*

:D That's the end of one pesky muse, at least for a while. Now to deal with the rest. 

~*~

Translations:

None at moment. SURPRISE! 

~*~

Thanx to **DBZ Chick1**, **Nooka**, **shadowphoenix2**, and **Maynara**

So what's next? Find out on **Vigilante Angel**. 

REVIEW! Don't commit suicide (your problems aren't worth that),

AAS 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.


	15. Chapter the Fourteenth: Exposure

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Fourteenth 

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Edd: Really? Eddie: Yeah! Edd: Really? Eddie: Yeah! Edd: Really? Eddie: Yeah! Edd: Really? Eddie: Yeah, really! Edd: *Silence*

*Turns off Ed, Edd, and Eddie commercial for Cartoon Network* Well, did you get the message yet?!

Reviewers: Yeah! 

Really? 

Reviewers: *annoyed silence* 

*Blinks* 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations _by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: *Laughs evilly slowly* Muahaha… So begins the Saga we have ALL been waiting for…

BUU! 

Well, actually, it's just the beginning (and end) of the pre-Tournament Saga and the beginning of the Tournament Saga, all in one chappie. There will be a definite time switch here, so you're going to see the little thing in [brackets] more than once in here. Great. 

I have a plight concerning an uncertain feature of this ficcy. It has to do with a genre called "Romance", and two reviewers are in a clash over this, while one just wants to know if it IS going to be Romance. I have no idea, since this is all completely up to the reviewers, so PLZ please PLZ help me out here, 'k? 

Long A/n. gotta work on story now. Many changes with Gohan and series timeline in place. Blame it all on **The Sh33p**'s _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ fic. He & his fic have inspired me to just chuck the whole Buu timeline out the window and think up my own thingies. Beware of many OOC and out-of-place commodities as we go along. That is all. 

Those being said, enjoy. 

(Where'd Aline go? O.o) 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

You know. *Cackles* *Starts coughing from cackling so much* I'm all right, *cough, cough* just need some water…

*Water gets thrown over head winning-football-team-dump-ice-water-over-coach style*

-_- BAKA! 

Aline: Well, you said you wanted water…

-_- 

Aline: *Blinks* Uh-oh…

**__**

COSMO LASER BEAM!!!!!!!!

Aline: *Sighs* Here we go again… *Vaporized instantly*

She'll be back, the witch. *Looks annoyed*

~*~

[Two Months Later: Seven Years After Cell]

Three warriors duked it out in the air. Two seemed to be attacking the other with only minimal success. The Lone Warrior was beating the daylights out of both of his opponents. But unlike what some people might think after this description, the Outcast wasn't having an easy time of this task. Nor was he having a hard one. It was a fine line. 

The taller of the two was smacked soundly away and sent sailing into the ground of Other World. His body left somewhat of a print behind, ahem, somewhat, I said, as the orange-skinned lad lay back his head. He was joined shortly by his teammate as she, too, marked a body outline on the earth that was deeper than his. Not by much, a few decimeters, but still deeper. 

Both panted heavily as their sparring partner drifted idly in the air. He crossed his arms and looked at the siblings in their outlines, an amused/sympathetic look on his face. The breathing patterns of the Vagabond were just as heavy and gasping for air as his two opponents, but he was managing them a lot better. Ah, the advantages of being a Super Saiyan Three and in control. 

But Gohan wasn't powered up to SS3. Instead he was only at a very low level SS2, courteously done so to give the other warriors a fighting chance (heh). But even so, he had beaten them after 10 minutes. 10 very long and exhausting minutes. 

At 18 years of age, Gohan had topped off his height at 6'1", and still growing. However, he had slowed down a bit over the years. Gohan had switched his purple gi for something a bit more normal, at least by Earth standards. But even by Earth's standards his outfit was a lil strange. 

Black was the color of his long-sleeved shirt with a large red symbol on the back identical to his father's: the symbol of North "King" Kaio. On the front in the upper let corner of Gohan's chest were the words: "Property Of The Gods" in white small caps. 

The black matched perfectly with not only Gohan's hair and eyes, but it also went with the carefully chosen faded white gi-style pants he wore and the traditional boots of any Son male fighter. Gohan's laces were a little worn away, holes in some places, from having to adjust from normal ankles to pumped up to normal again, all in a matter of seconds. 

Speaking of Gohan's eyes, they had taken on a bit of a greenish tinge* from going Super Saiyan all the time. There was some blue, too, but it wasn't visible. The green definitely dominated. Gohan's hair on the other hand was still as spiky as when he had been sixteen, but perhaps with a few additions. Still as spiky (spikier), but certainly not as long. Gohan had gotten something of a haircut recently as he had been a bit too slow in dodging a sword cut, shearing a fifth of his hair off. But Gohan had to admit it was an improvement. (Not as short as in series. X-P. He looks even dorkier with that haircut) 

That was not the only change. Gohan's form had filled out. Now he wasn't as slightly awkward as he had been as a younger teenager. He was almost in his prime form. Merely saying, his chest had broadened out, his abs were to die for, and his shoulders fit his "Property Of The Gods" shirt nicely. But the biggest alteration was the muscles. 

With the fine-tuning and control of the new Super Saiyan Three level, more muscles brought themselves to the skin, rippling as Gohan moved. They were also more compacted together, instead of bulging out into the sky as a man on steroids' muscles or a bodybuilder's muscles would be. (X-P) The annexation of these muscles marked Gohan as a very active fighter when viewed properly. 

In short, Gohan was a hottie.

But then we knew that. 

Gohan hovered languidly over fellow fighters, sympathetically watching them strangle themselves in their efforts to breathe. He sensed the natural healing powers the sibs possessed go in overdrive as they restored life to the paralyzed limbs of Osi and healed the bloody gash that Ron sported across his forehead. The other various wounds and injuries disappeared as well, the bruises slower to fade. But they finally relinquished their loving grips and were no more. 

Gohan grinned exhaustedly at the idea. The demi-Saiyan brought the tips of his fingers together in a steeple, charging up a dark forest-green ki. The green spread up the length of his arms and covered his head and whole body down to his broken toenails. As the two halves merged into one, the ki gleamed brilliantly as the healing effect came to a close. Then the green fire dissolved and Gohan emerged, healthier than ever, but a little tired after the extra ki usage. 

The Osi sibs were by now out of their own self-dug graves and flying up to Gohan. Their friend greeted them with a grin and "Didn't take you as long to lose to me this time." 

Osi sneered while Ron nodded ruefully. Gohan laughed at their reactions, causing Osi to scowl harder, and Ron to grin himself. Soon Gohan ceased laughing and all three friends descended to the ground where three people waited. 

The first was North Kaio. The familiar blue catfish god with his infamous Jokes of Corn was standing just slightly ahead of the other two. He seemed to be awed of them, but Gohan saw no point in that awe. Hey, it wasn't as if the other two guys were above the North Kaio, was it? 

But as soon as Gohan checked the two over, he changed his mind. He could tell that the tall sunburned-looking white-haired guy was obviously a powerful figure. The person beside the frowning sunburn in a colorful tunic and leggings outfit and a shawl tied around his waist was much shorter but just as powerful a figurehead, if not more so. Lavender skin went perfectly with the matching outfit of Sunburn, but contrasted sharply with the white Mohawk. Sharp obsidian eyes looked even odder and just as out of place as their owner and his companion. 

The three fighters acknowledged their Quadrant Ruler, noticing with apprehension the sweat he was spouting off. Ron looked sideways at the guests with a wondering look on his cheerful face. Osi was beginning to worry, but Gohan, Gohan was nonchalant through the exchange with North Kaio. The demi-Saiyan had no problem meeting people; as long as the people he was meeting didn't waste his time, it were fine. (Aline: Rhyme. AAS: *Sarcastically* Yay.) 

North Kaio said hello to three of his top fighters. He whispered urgently to them, "Play along, Osiran and Osiron. These two want only to talk to Gohan. I don't know why, but perhaps _they_ will tell." The strange emphasis on the word _they_ left no room in the minds of his "dojo" members: They were major authoritative peeps. But one question did remain. Was Gohan in trouble? 

Well, let's find out, shall we? 

North Kaio leaned back and said loudly, "Osiran and Osiron, you are dismissed. Gohan, come with me." 

The Osi sibs bowed to their superior and promptly removed themselves from the premises, both casting worried looks first at Gohan, then at the mysterious two. Gohan nodded at King North Kaio and followed the Ruler over to Sunburn and Mohawk. When they reached them, North Kaio sank into a bow not unlike the one he had paid tribute to with for the Grand Kaio upon first arriving there. Gohan just gave a short bow from the waist before he straightened up. He was paying them the courtesy, but he was also telling them he didn't trust them. 

The heavily frowning sunburned person frowned even more; creating more wrinkles in his already distorted face. The Mohawk simply nodded in return. North Kaio rose out of his bow and got a nod from Lavender Skin as well. 

Then Mohawk started to speak, shattering the silence. "Hello Gohan. My name is Shin. This is Kibito, my servant. We are from the Plane of the Highest Heaven. You may not have heard of us, but my title instead." 

Kibito picked up from there. Or tried to. Gohan raised a hand, abruptly stopping him from even opening his mouth. The demi-Saiyan bowed to Shin's manservant, smoothing at least one ruffled feather in the old soul before he continued on. 

"I've read about you in my studies. King Yemma lends me things to study in order to keep up my education. I've come across you two quite recently. As recently as yesterday, in fact." Gohan didn't pause but plunged straight into the nosedive. 

"Shin, you're the Supreme Kaio, are you not?" if Gohan's tone had been even hardly accusative, Kibito would have snorted. But it wasn't, as he noticed. Instead it was pleasant and polite, quite the opposite of how Gohan had acted so far. Gohan's voice was still pleasant as he turned to Kibito. 

"And you are more than the Supreme Kaio's servant. You are the Assistant Supreme Kaio, right?" 

Kibito gave a startled grunt. Gohan smirked at the A. S. Kaio before he said, "The Other World is honored by your presence." But Gohan didn't bow. Kibito kind of growled at that, but he didn't say anything as his master shot him a glance. 

"Thank you Gohan. Now do you know why we're here?" Shin asked. 

Gohan shook his head. "No."

Kibito glanced disdainfully at North Kaio and directed Shin's attention to the lower class god. The Supreme Kaio dismissed the sight of him business-like, saying, "He can stay. This does concern his Quadrant, after all, Kibito." The small god turned back to Gohan. 

"Gohan, there is going to be a World Martial Arts tournament in two month's time on your planet Earth. At that tournament, we believe that an evil wizard by the name of Babidi is going to come. This wizard will undoubtedly be trying to steal energy from the Earthlings at that tournament for his father's creation, Majin Buu. Are you with me so far?" 

"Yeah, I guess. Just one question. This wizard, Babidi, he's on Earth right now?" Gohan asked, with a thoughtful expression on his face. 

"No. But he is making his way toward there." came the harsh answer from Kibito. 

"Okay. And you're sure he's going to show up at the WMAT? The World Martial Arts Tournament?" 

"Actually no. He may instead send one or more of his followers." Shin responded. 

"How will I be able to recognize these followers?" 

"They will have this on their foreheads." Kibito spat on the ground, making it hiss and sparkle with charged up magic. It bubbled, then settled into the form of a sinister-looking cursive M. 

Gohan stared at it, committing it to memory. The questioning continued. 

"All right, last question. Who is Majin Buu?" 

Shin said, "You mean what is Majin Buu. It is a monster, a killing machine. It knows no bounds. It will not be stopped by anything, nor will it stop at anything to get its fun. It is horrible, and in order to stop it, we must not let it out of its shell." 

Gohan nodded. Shin continued. "To start from the beginning, there was another evil wizard, the father of Babidi, and he was Bibidi. Bibidi wanted to control the universe, so he created Majin Buu out of bubble gum and evilness." Gohan's eyebrows raised considerably at the bubble gum thing. He didn't interrupt. 

"Bibidi and Majin Buu destroyed billions of trillions of lives and planets. They even crossed here into the Other World, where I as East (?) Kaio and my colleagues South, West, and North Kaios did battle with them. Majin Buu absorbed first the North Kaio of that time, then the East and South Kaios, in that order." 

The Kaio broke off then. Gohan frowned in concern as Kibito bent over his master. Shin waved off the A. S. Kaio and turned to Gohan again. The demi-Saiyan, however, was holding out his palm face up to him. 

"Here, transmit your memories to me. I'll sort them out," offered Gohan. 

Kibito started sputtering in rage, his sunburnt skin turning purplish. Shin looked surprised at the sensitivity of such an offer. But he reached forward onto Gohan's palm, tapping two fingers on it and drawing away. Shin noted the concerned look on the fighter's face change to disgust to horror to neutrality. 

Gohan extended two of his own fingers onto the back of Shin's hand, returning Shin's memories to him. a grimmer version of the Son Gohan Grin™ found its way onto his face, unnatural looking to Shin after all the information in full about Majin Buu. 

"Guess we'll have quite another battle for Earth again if and when Buu is unlocked. Reminds me a bit of Cell in a way," came Gohan's remark. Shin and Kibito were taken aback. This was not the reaction they were expecting. At all. 

Gohan looked at the fearful North Kaio. The blue god was trembling so hard his teeth were chattering! His springy attenae were flying all over the place as well. Gohan said to his Quadrant Ruler, 

"I know exactly how you feel, King Kaio." Turning back, again, to the Supreme Kaio, the demi asked, "What do you want me to do with this information?" 

"You are to help us locate Babidi and Buu by giving up your ki to him. Babidi or his followers will take the ki to Buu. Once we find the place, we will stop them from inserting the energy into Buu and destroy Babidi and his followers. Then the Earth will be safe and no harm will have been done." Shin said confidently. (The mightier they are, the harder they fall.) 

Gohan frowned again. "That's a good plan. But not good enough. There are too many insecure variables and holes in it. I mean, how do we know that I'll be matched against Babini or Babiki or whatever his name is? How do we know that some other person isn't going to get involved? No, I'm sorry, but that won't work. Something better will have to be done. 

"I could lead you right to Babidi right now, by his ki, but he's not on Earth at this time. There is an odd ki on Earth even today that is not of that world… I'll have to check that out when I can." 

Kibito barked a laugh. "How can you? You are dead." 

Gohan smiled cryptically. "I have my ways, Kibito. Now, if you'll excuse me, Supreme Kaio, Assistant Supreme Kaio, I have to go. My sword Arikeru is calling." Gohan bowed abruptly again and strolled off, North Kaio's symbol standing out sharply on his back. 

The Supreme and Assistant Supreme Kaios watched abstruse fighter walk away from them with his hands thrust carelessly into his pockets. Kibito absently accepted the hurried good-byes of the North Kaio as he started off after Gohan. Finally the sunburnt Kaio's servant turned to his master and said gruffly, 

"That is one very strange boy." 

Shin nodded dazedly. "Indeed." 

The next moment they disappeared, Kibito Kai Transmitting them both out of Other World. 

~*~

Gohan finished telling Piccolo, Mr. Popo, and Dende about all that had happened. Not long after he had felt the kis of the Highest Heaven Kayos disappear, Gohan had contacted those on the Lookout through telepathy. At first they had reacted in skeptical surprise about the Supreme Kaio, but when they had heard the full tale about Majin Buu, they were more than ready to prepare. 

Gohan cut off his link to them, feeling a bit better about the situation. He looked around before he, too, vanished from Other World. 

~*~

The guardian checked both the kis of his otoutosan and kyoudaibun and was reassured that they were safe. The eighteen-year-old then set his sights on the real purpose of his being here: those odd kis. 

There were in fact three of them that so worried Gohan. They had a weird warp (alliteration alert! Hehe) about them, as if something was quite wrong with them. 

Gohan jumped into the sky and rushed along at his own speed, thus braking the sound barrier twice over in a single second. The wind, had Gohan been a full human, would have bit him in the eyes and stung his cheeks; but since Gohan was also proud to call himself Saiyan, it instead played with his hair. The Earthling wind knew by now that it was no use in trying to bring down those with an alien's race in their genes; it was useless. So it resigned itself to tossing wildly Gohan's short spikes. 

Soon the flight was over as Gohan banked to the left and landed on brown mountains overlooking a desert. The desert, however, had a very odd thingamajig in the middle of it: a ship. 

Oh it wasn't an ordinary ship. Oh no, no indeed not. The ship was instead one that fans of DBZ are very familiar with. Yep, a spaceship. It was round, too, much like a certain tyrant and his father's spaceship, complete with all the pretty lights. All in all, Gohan found it quite strange, in a familiar way. 

__

Why would Frieza's ship be doing all the way here? Fully operational too. I thought that Mirai Trunks did away with that thing after he destroyed Frieza and King Cold? Hmm. Interesting, very interesting. 

Gohan looked up as a form flew high above. Luckily, Gohan's Saiyan Sight easily picked out all the details. He was human, but so disfigured he was almost unrecognizable as a human. Gohan bent down low and hid his ki as another human came by. This one was not as big or as thickheaded looking as the other one, but was definitely as grotesque. And they both carried the Majin. 

Gohan identified the cursive M on their foreheads immediately. I mean, after all, it's kind of hard to forget such a sinister M when it deals with the very fate of the universe, isn't it? _Well, yeah! _The Saiyan knew he was on the right track. 

Still behind his rock, Gohan listened intensely as the two landed far below him. They muttered lowly to each other, but Gohan managed. 

"Master Babidi will not be happy if this is all we can collect. We will have to go that WMAT to gather sufficient energy," the smaller one said to the bigger person. 

The huge Babidi's servant grunted what sounded like agreement. The more sensible one talked again. It seemed that he was the only one of the duo capable of speech. 

"First, though, Spopovitch, let's get the human behind the rocks. He has been spying on us." 

Spopovitch grunted again. The two turned and simultaneously rocketed to Gohan. But before they could, Gohan flared into Super Saiyan and stepped out from behind the huge monolith he had taken refuge from. He stood there and challenged them with his jade eyes even as they read him on the Power Meter. When their strange eyes lit up, Gohan launched off. By the time the maniacal duo had even gotten off the ground, Gohan was halfway to them. When they were a mere meter in midair, Gohan struck them down, avoiding meticulously the ki-draining vase the smaller person held in his grasp. 

He disposed of Spopovitch first. The big bully was laid flat with three punches to his head, abdomen, and chest. Gohan fired a quick ki blast to the body and distinguished it, before he had to deal with the smaller one. The smaller one was harder to down, but as I always say, the stronger they are, the harder the fall. (Eh, Kid Buu? K. Buu: *Squeals angrily* AAS: Uh-oh. Bye! *K. Buu zooms away* Thank goodness! *Wipes sweat off forehead in relief*) And so it was with Gohan's opponent. 

Gohan seemingly jabbed the other dude once in the mouth, but as we all know, we humans are ever so limited in sight. In way slowed up motion, Gohan had punched him in the nose once, in the jaw twice, and ducked down to kick fiercely the stomach and bobbed up again to bring back his fist to ram it straight into the mouth. Shows us just how much we need to get our eyes checked. (^^;)

Gohan spun away and landed with his back to the scenery behind him. Scenery marred by the sight of one very mangled body and a definite scorch mark in the rock and in the ground. Gohan unbent his knees and jabbed his elbow behind him, knocking the breath out of the stomach of his short opponent. He gyrated slightly to view the gasping sight of the small dude lying on his side behind him. 

Raising his hand, Gohan blasted him. 

~*~

[One Month Later: Seven Years After Cell]

Trunks bounded up and down. He was in Super Saiyan mode and was thoroughly enjoying showing off the form to a stuttering SS Vegeta. The Saiyan Prince was shocked even more when Goten came up, looked at Trunks and Vegeta, and turned Super himself. That really threw Veggie for a loop. 

Vegeta recovered his dignity after a while and demanded of his gaki, "How are you able to turn in Super Saiyan at your age?! Which of you is the stronger?!" he said, switching gears on a dime. 

Trunks said, "Uh…" while his eyes moved around in confusion. Goten piped up, "He's stronger, but only by a little bit! I bet I can beat him next time!" 

Trunks shot back hotly, "Nuh-uh! Bet you can't!" The Saiyan boys started arguing back and forth, rattling Vegeta's already seriously strained nerves, until he finally barked, "Enough! Go play somewhere else or something!" The boys, who had come to attention at the sound of his gruff order, nodded nervously and scrambled off. 

"Not _you_, brat. _You_ come here." 

Trunks froze mid-stride. His face was twitching madly as Goten left him to his fate in the middle of the G-dome. Sweat poured heavily down Trunks' face and neck, and his hands twitched continuously. 

He was doomed. 

But, not yet. For Goku's voice rang out cheerily in their heads, Hi guys! What's up? 

Vegeta's blonde head shot up. "Kakkarot!" 

Hi Vegeta! Guess what, there's the World Martial Arts Tournament coming up, and I'm coming! But only if you and the others show up! I gotta have some competition around here! Goku's bright patented Smile™ could be heard even over the telepathic link. 

Vegeta snorted. "Hmpf. Well, if you're going, Kakkarot, I am. We still have a fight to finish, remember?" said the Prince matter-of-factly. 

Goku responded challengingly, Oh, and who's going to be the winner? 

Vegeta smirked. "_I_ am, Kakkarot, and don't you doubt that!" 

Goku obviously was going to say something in return, but his first word was cut off by what sounded like a shove from someone else. Gohan's voice came over the line, All right, Dad, that's enough talking. I'm coming too, you know. Vegeta, train hard. You're almost there. Goten and Trunks, I want you to enter as well. You're certainly up for it. Oh and Vegeta, will you tell the others about this? _Nicely_, okay? I don't want anyone coming just because _you_ threatened them if they didn't. 

Gohan's reprimand elicited another "Hmpf" from Vegeta while Goten and Trunks had an image of Gohan with his arms crossed and that accusing look on his face that he had turned loose upon them so often. The friends tried to stifle their laughter at the thought. They only barely succeeded. 

Gohan caught what they were trying to do and amusedly advised them privately, Ya better run, and fast.

The demis immediately fled, shouting wobbly to Vegeta, "We'll go tell them instead! You stay here and train!" They escaped outside of the G-dome and instantly dissolved into laughter. 

"Hahahahaha! Oh my gosh, I would so totally pay money to see Gohan put that look on my dad! Hahaha!" 

"Hahahaha! I bet Gohan would be able to beat your dad anytime!" 

"Of course Gohan would! He is stronger than my dad. But can _your_ dad beat _my_ dad?" 

"Yes he can!" 

"No he wouldn't!" 

"Yes he would!" 

"No!" 

"Yes!" 

"No!" 

"Yes!" 

"_NO!_"

"_YES!_" 

They glared daggers at each other, forgetting for the moment their goal. Luckily Gohan intervened with a gentle, HEY! LET'S STOP ARGUING AND GET GOING HERE! 

They snapped to, threw a salute to the air, and marched off to Bulma's secondary private lab. 

~*~

[One Month Later: Exactly Seven Years After Cell] 

They were here. But where were Goku and Gohan? 

~*~

A/n: Whew. Long chapter. 

Aline: Yep. 

Oh, you're back. 

Aline: Yep. 

-_^

Aline: Poll. 

Oh yeah. That. Okay, let's have a poll. Should I

a) put Videl in a relationship w/ our fave demi, 

b) leave 'er out, the Satan slut, 

or 

c) you don't care and it's left to me? (o.o)

REVIEW! 

Aline: Hmpf. 

What's with you? Oh, you're still sore from the **_COSMO LASER BEAM_**? 

Aline: *Nods*

O.o She doesn't even talk this time. Guess she's REALLY sore. 

Aline: There's a reason. 

Three words this time! 

Aline: -_-

Eh, maybe not. Onto the rest! 

Aline: Thank you. 

TWO! 

Aline: Grr…

~*~

*This taken from _Hybrid Theory: Generations_

~*~

Translations:

Baka: Idiot, fool

Kaio: Kai: God

Otoutosan: younger brother

Kyoudaibun: sworn brother

Gaki: brat

~*~

Speaking of reviewers…

****

Angel35: Well I both updated AND reviewed! Don't you love me? :D Nice story too! Especially the first chap! 

****

THE DARK ONE18—Before I answer—THANX FOR YOUR REVIEWS! I'm so happy you decided to read this and were satisfied! YES! *Pumps fist* *Sobers down* Okay, the Gh/V thing. You say you want it, another reviewer doesn't. What should I do? (See **SS2 Megami-sama**'s response) 

****

Shadowphoenix2—Bad me. :D Chloroform, hey, I just wrote what I thought! I was in too much of a greedy rush to post that chapter that I didn't put my time into all the details, 'k? Thanx tho! Nice double updates! NOW UPDATE AGAIN! 

YES I AM INSANE! AND PROUD OF IT! MUAHAHA! 

Aline: -_-'

****

V son Saiyan—You're better off without the knowledge of Lime, I bet. She killed herself so that her psychiatrist would not make her break her promise to Gohan. Videl is indeed the raven-haired girl; Hercule _is_ famous, but only as a bystander in the Cell Games and as a whiner about the Gold Saiyan, and the people of the world worship Gohan as the Gold Saiyan. 

I'll have to get back to you about the romance part. 

****

SS2 Megami-sama—^^; Ok, I understand that you HATE Videl. But what would you have me do for a romance story, IF this becomes one? ?_? A lot of my reviewers, A LOT, are asking for romance! What should I do? 

Would you be okay if they just became not-so-good-friends? O.o

****

SSJ5 Tigger—YES LIME! Hahaha! I updated! No need to cuss at me! :P As to why Lime died, see **v son saiyan**'s response. Outside of the story, I didn't know all that much about her, so I decided to leave her out. But then Halloween rolled around, and a certain God of Goryness decided to intervene… BAD GRIM REAPER! 

****

DBZ Chick1—I updated!

****

Nooka—Thanx! I updated! 

****

Simba_rulz—Nope, no Gohan! *Cries with **simba*** My email should be unblocked now, so come on in! 

****

CW—And last, but WAY not least, **CW**. Now. That chappie was irrelevant to the story. I was on a sugar high. Yes it was Halloween. You can mentally skip the chapter. Thank you for thanking me! I totally agreed with your review, but I did feel evil… But I don't think I'll be pulling anything like that on you or the other reviewers again. *Cackles carefully* 

Thanx for your rev! 

~*~

Thanx to **Angel35**, **THE DARK ONE18**, **shadowphoenix2**, **v son saiyan**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **SSJ5 Tigger**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Nooka**,** simba_rulz**, and **CW **for their reviews! 

So what's going to happen at the tournament? Find out, only, on **Vigilante Angel**. 

Looking forward to the tournament next chappie,

AAS 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.


	16. Chapter the Fifteenth: Fellowship

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Fifteenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: Yada, yada, yada, yada. Sue me if ya want, but I not saying those five words. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: THE FLU SUCKS!!!! Especially when I have to go to school with it!!! Basically, I'm not contagious, so I still havta go to school. How sucky is dat? *Shakes head* *Sighs* Bleaaaaaagh! I have a test tomorrow on the 19th of November, and a research paper for the same class American Govt., and BOTH OF THEM SUCK!!!! At least I don't have an essay on this test. HAPPINESS! AND, I get to miss VOLLEYBALL practice! YES! Although this week IS the tryouts for the team… . Uh-oh… Hehe…

Moving on! We have lotsa Japanese in this chappie! Not only familiar words, but also new words introduced just for this chapter. A few of the new words will be used in the tournament and the rest of this ficcy, but not all of them. 

Poll's still going! 

Enjoy! 

Aline: You _dare_ to start the chapter without _me_?

Well, you just came in, didn't you? So NOW enjoy! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

__

"In short, Gohan was a hottie. 

But then we knew that." 

—Chapter Fourteen

~*~

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

They were here. But where were Goku and Gohan? 

[Day of the Tournament: Seven Years After Cell]

Where were Gohan and Goku? This the Z-senshi asked themselves as they stood around and waited for the missing twain. 

Bulma was keeping an eye on her son Trunks while trying to keep Chichi occupied. This was one of the few times Chichi would be able to see her dead family since the Cell Games. As you can see, this made Chichi very impatient as well as anxious. Bulma as her friend was trying to appease that. 

Vegeta was off on his own tree not from his meito and his gaki. Piccolo was also apart from the others. But even as one saw him in his place way on the outside, they could sense that he was still a part of the group milling around. 

Goten and Trunks were making faces at each other in heated competition. Krillin was talking to 18 and Yamcha, three-year-old Marron's hand held loosely in his own. Muten Roshi, Puar, and Oolong were on the side listening. Well, Roshi was living up to his rep as a dirty old man, but he always does that. We needn't pay any mind to him. 

Out of all the Z-senshi members around, Vegeta felt the most ready. Of course, he always felt that way, but now he was ready with a vengeance. Especially since yesterday. The Prince smirked to himself at the secret only he, those green beans, and Kakkagaki nonburu hitotsu knew. It was truly a glorious day for the Saiyan Prince. Although, he added to himself, Kakkagaki nonburu hitotsu had said that the clown was also really close to the level. But just the knowledge that he was reached it first was very gratifying. He supposed he owed two to the first gaki of Kakkarot for first telling him the "fight at base power to get stronger" advice, then for telling him he was almost there. Those two things had sent him on the road to greatness. 

If there was one thing Vegeta despised besides Kakkarot, it was being in debt. And that was what he was, to someone no less than Kakkarot's first gaki. Well, one thing he could do to lessen the burden was to stop treating him like the gaki was his inferior. He had shown plenty of times that he was not that. 

Vegeta broke off his train of thought there, before it got any more drastic. These kinds of thoughts could be saved for later, when they were more suitable to think. Right now he had to prepare for battle. 

~*~

Goku Grinned™. It was time to go. 

~*~

The heads of the Z-senshi turned to the red gi-clad man who suddenly popped into dead existence beside them. They stared at the cheerful face of the yuujin they had not seen for seven long years. 

Goku blinked. Then he said, "Hey guys, don't I get a hug?" 

It was like puppets being cut from their strings. Dozens of bodies piled on top of one strong one, which upheld them all. Only a few bodies did not join the rush. Two of them were Chichi and one other. 

Goku peeked over the heads of Yamcha and Puar. He spotted the one special person who was hanging back. Pushing apart the crowd in front of him, Goku walked over to Chichi. On the way, he passed a teary Krillin. Goku looked at him and then looked back again. 

"Krillin?!" 

Krillin brightened up immediately. "Hi Goku!" 

"Krillin, I almost didn't recognize you! You've got hair!"

Krillin smiled. "Yes, Goku, I do. I'm not naturally bald. I kept my head waxed. Didn't you know that?" 

Goku exclaimed, "No, I didn't! Wow!" 

Krillin was left behind as Goku moved on. At last he reached Chichi. They smiled at each other and said their hellos. Then Goku detected a flash of red behind Chichi's skirt. He leaned to the side to get a better view of the boy hiding behind his wife. 

"Chichi, there's a mini-me behind your skirt!" the man blurted out.

Goku younger twin, very much younger, peeked out shyly from behind his mother. Chichi moved back and said to him, "Goten, it's all right, sweetie. This is your father." 

Goten tightened his grip on Chichi's dresses as he looked at himself in the way distant future. The chibi managed to croak out, "I'm Goten," in a notably minute voice. 

Goku looked down on at him with a friendly Son smile and replied, "I'm Goku." 

Father and second son looked at each other for a moment. Then Goten let go of Chichi's skirt and ran to his dad, crying, "Daddy!" Goku bent down on his knees to receive the child into his arms. They drew apart after each gave the other the usual bone-crushing Saiyan hug. 

Then Goten looked over Goku's shoulder and his face lit up like the world. 

"Niisan!" 

Goten let go suddenly of Goku and scrambled urgently over the Saiyan's shoulder. Goku let him go, startled by the suddenness of the movements. The Saiyan got up and watched his son zoom away at speeds unimaginable at the son's age. 

"Jeez, I didn't realize kids today could be so fast!" Goku said. 

Beside him, Krillin face-faulted. 

Goten launched into the air at Gohan. The Z-senshi turned to look at Gohan, most of them in surprise because they hadn't even known he was there. Gohan stood there with a small smile on his face and his hands in his pants pockets. But as Goten flew through the air at him, at the last minute Gohan shot his arms out and caught his otoutosan. 

Goten lifted his head, the glow of his face shining its brightest in that moment. The smirk on Gohan's face conveyed just as well to Goten Gohan's own perpetual relief and happiness at seeing his otoutosan alive and safe. 

"Hey squirt." Gohan greeted Goten. 

He then glanced up from his brother and Smiled™ at the rest of the Z-senshi. 

"Sorry I'm late guys. I had a little business to take care of."

With that, the mirror-quiet split as the Z-senshi came along for the ride. Chichi wrangled a hug from her eldest son. Krillin received a low five. Marron managed to grab onto the demi-Saiyan's legs. 18 pried her daughter off of Gohan's legs and nodded her hello to him. Goku got a smile and Piccolo obtained the regular "Hey Piccolo". The Namekian got an extra greeting by none other than Goten himself with "Hey! It's Piccolo-san! Hi Piccolo-san!" It was apparent that in all the excitement Goten hadn't even noticed the tall green alien. What a surprise. 

Vegeta brought himself into the center of attention with a snort. (Wonder how Vegeta's nose feels after all those snorts?) Gohan looked over at him, and the smirk on his face grew wider. 

"Hi Vegeta. You ready?" 

Vegeta smirked back. "You know I am, Kakkagaki. Prepare yourself." 

Gohan nodded. Vegeta turned to Goku. "That goes double for you, Kakkarot!" 

The Saiyan Prince walked away, his arms crossed over his chest in standard posture. The duffel bag he had brought with him dangled over his left arm. 

The Z-senshi watched him go, the humans who could fight with relief, the Sons with smiles, Chichi and Bulma with aggravation, and Trunks with indifference. 

Bulma rolled her eyes. "Don't mind Vegeta. He's actually happy to see you." (Vegeta? Happy to see Goku? Never!) 

Goku smiled, unperturbed. "Don't worry Bulma, I'm used to it." 

Trunks stepped up to Gohan with a play-it-cool attitude. "Hi Gohan. Anything new going on?" 

Gohan responded just as coolly, "Not really. True, there's the fact that Dad and I can only stay for 48 hours, but that doesn't really count." 

Chichi butted into the conversation. "WHAT?!?! My baby and my husband can only stay for 2 days?!??! But why?!" 

Baba appeared with a zoom of air uncommon to all but a rare few humans. The tiny tiger of a Fortuneteller clasped her hands in front of her as she told the human wife of one of the last Saiyans existing (?) the reason why. 

"Gohan and Goku were each given 24 hours. Since Gohan is here on Goku's hour account, and Goku will be on Earth tomorrow on Gohan's hour account, that's forty-eight hours. But the reason why they have just 24 hours each, I can't bring the dead back for more than a day. It's been that way even with Goku's grandfather Gohan, and it's been that way since way before that. Those are the rules, missy. I'm not about to change them, no matter _what_," Baba said. 

Only Gohan got the gist of the uncanny accentuation of the last three words. Piccolo did, too, but he said nothing. Gohan merely smiled mysteriously at Baba, making Yamcha, whom happened to catch the smile, think there was something going on here. But the retired bandit shrugged as the group moved on. 

"Don't worry, Mom/Chi, we'll make up for our lost time," Gohan and Goku said at the same time. They shot a quick glare at each other and quickly said, "Jinx!" simultaneously. They yelled "Jinx!" again, Goku this time beating Gohan in the battle of fast mouths. Gohan crossed his arms and pouted while his father smirked, proud of himself. Goku hadn't won against his son ever since that Other World Tournament. So even a small insignificant victory like a Jinx game was something major to Goku. 

Goten laughed at Gohan's pouting face. Muten Roshi and the others just shook their heads or rolled their eyes at the childish way Gohan was behaving at the moment. 

But soon Gohan was grinning, even if he couldn't talk. Baba bade her good-byes to Goku and "youngster", as was her favorite nickname for Gohan of late. Gohan just mock scowled and waved her off, still unable to talk under the Jinx. The tiny tiger sniggered at the unfortunate demi-Saiyan before she popped out of the Living. 

After more discussion, the people competing in the Tenkaichi Budokai (sp.?) and the non-competitors splintered. Goku relieved Gohan of the Jinx, and Gohan used the opportunity to call back a scampering Goten. Goku was reminded again of Gohan's duty as guardian angel as this event played out. 

They caught up to Vegeta in a little while and broke their group around him, enveloping him as a wave does around a particularly stalwart granite rock. Vegeta was almost shocked out of his skin, a state akin to having a figurative heart attack, but the Saiyan Prince prevailed and "harrumphed". However, he didn't pull away from the Z-senshi. 

The Prince noted the scabbard and the sword the scabbard sheathed on Gohan's back. The s & s combination was angled diagonally just so, so that if and when Gohan needed his sword he could draw it easily. _But why does the brat have that thing with him today? He doesn't need it. Unless the gaki knows something about today that I don't?_ Vegeta asked himself. He would get no answer. Yet.

The competitors signed up at the registration stand. Krillin entered as himself. Piccolo came up with an alternate name for himself, surprising everybody when he announced himself as Majunior. However, when questioned, Piccolo gave an adequate enough answer to slake everyone's curiosity, "So no one will recognize my name from the Cell Games." He was left alone on the subject after that. 

Goku was recognized immediately and saved the trouble of signing up. Vegeta managed to refrain from doing more than glaring and uttering a short "Vegeta". The only purebred Saiyan _alive_ then moved out of the way of the Kakkabrats and his own gaki. He stomped off ahead of the annoying humans with the Namek in tow. 

Goten and Trunks were looked at strangely, but they were signed up as well. Gohan, however, was vaguely familiar to the clerks. They didn't know why or from where, but they had no choice but to accept "Gohan" as the name of the oddball-familiar contestant. 18 entered as Juuhachi, also to earn her privacy. Little Marron latched lovingly onto her mother's hand throughout the exchange of the clerks and 18. 

Finally the registration was settled. On the way to the area just for contestants (God I sound like a game show host or summat), the Z-senshi passed a group of four teenagers Gohan's age. One of them was a male, but the others were all females. Two of them had black hair, and the extra female and the lone boy had blonde hair. 

Gohan identified one of the girls to be that nosy raven-haired girl he had seen at least four times over the last seven years. Upon closer notice, the short hair she sported now coupled with the spring-out lavender of her eyes, she looked kind of pretty. But Gohan felt like she was too snoopy for her own good. So he rejected her and moved onto her companions. 

He dismissed contiguously the blonde female; just by her high-pitch giggling he could tell she had as much room upstairs as Bulma's mom had. The other blonde, the boy, was dismissed snottily as well. It was clear he was a muscle buff and a weakling far below any worthy fighter's status. 

Gohan snorted at his inner thoughts and focused on the third girl. 

She was black-haired too, but the hair situation was a rather interesting one. She had on the top of her head a more of a very dark brown hair color. On the ends of her long tied-back stringy hair, it was jet black. Gohan could only deduce that either she loved the outdoors so much that her hair had become permanently bleached from the sun, or she liked to dye her hair in strange and unique ways. 

Guarded brown-black eyes looked out at Gohan from heavily tanned and already wrinkled skin, adding to the outdoorswoman look. It was clear that if she didn't have so much tan that she would be as pale as her friends and Gohan (I just realized—all the characters are white). Thin arching eyebrows curved nobly over the exotic dark brown-black eyes, but her nose didn't look any different than any other person's nose. Her mouth was just a line on her face, again like everyone else's. But hers had a sardonic lilt to it that spoke of harsh realism and a hidden fear so deep she probably didn't know she had it either. 

The girl showed her sense of style by wearing a white tank top which spelled out, "what're you looking at?", in dark red Times New Roman font. Gohan grinned slightly at the joke. The girl was quite a looker, so she must get that reaction a lot to wear that shirt with such a powerful meaning. Black loose sweats cascaded down to hide heavily worn combat boots who could strike fear, or a shoe imprint, into the hearts and cheeks of any enemy she encountered. She looked quite tough, actually. (Anyone notice I like to use "actually" a bit too much? ^^;) 

All these judgements happened in a matter of minutes. Gohan then turned his head to the inquisitive tug on his gi pants. 

"Yes, squirtmeister?" (:D)

"How much further, niisan?" Goten asked. "My feet hurt," he whined a minute later. 

Gohan cocked an eyebrow. "Your feet hurt? Well, that's not good. Here, lemme help you." The demi took the other demi by one arm and hoisted the chibi up onto the legal adult's left shoulder. Goten whooped in delight as he was whizzed through the air and plopped onto Gohan's broad shoulder. 

"Here ya go, otouto." 

"Thanks niisan!" 

Trunks looked on with jealousy. "Hey no fair! How come Goten gets to do that?" 

Goten stuck his tongue out at his best yuujin. "Trunks, you're just jealous that I have an oniisan and you don't!" (Haha) This was an old taunt argument that Trunks and Goten had had going ever since Gohan had first met Trunks. Gohan was quite sick and tired of it, and had devised many ways to end it ASAP. This was no exception. 

"C'mon guys, let's stop this. Trunks, do you really want to sit on my shoulder?" 

Trunks nodded. Gohan pulled him up the same way he had done to Goten. Now his shoulders were adorned with two chattering bundles of cloth and flesh and hair. Goku turned to see what the excitement was all about. He instead blinked at the image of a three-headed person grinning at him. 

"Uh, Gohan? Is that you?" Gohan asked the head on the left. It giggled, surprising into reality the curled up form of Goten. 

"No, Daddy, it's me, Goten. _He's_ Gohan!" the laughing child said. 

"Oh! So it's you and Trunks on Gohan's shoulders! I didn't see that!" Goku stated, pointing out the obvious. "Hey Goten, do you wanna sit on my shoulder?" 

"Yeah!" Goten asserted. He pushed off of Gohan's chest and leaped the short distance from Gohan to Goku. Goku received the brunt of the fall with an "Uugh!" as Goten's already heavy weight descended on his shoulders. But the father held his son up well, commenting on the strong grip Goten had on his spikes. 

"Wow you're a strong little guy aren't you?" Goku grinned as Goten gave him a half-hug around Goku's head. Gohan smirked at the sight. He then said to Trunks, "So it's just you and me up here, huh, Trunks?" 

Trunks said, "Good. I don't get you to myself that much." Gohan nodded agreement and allowed Trunks to take hold of a handful of his thick black spikes. (Whew that's a lotta k's! ^^;) 

They then started off after Vegeta and Piccolo, leading the group to the practice arena.

~*~

A/n: Yet _another_ long chappie. Heh. ^^; 

Aline: That's good. But the one thing I'm wondering about is, how do you manage to write such long chappies and still provide some suspense? 

What is this for? A muse interview? 

Aline: O.O *Innocently* Why, however did you guess? *Normally* Just answer the question, authoress. 

Uh, I don't really. I just write whatever comes to me and when I determine that whatever I've written is long enough, I end it there. That's it. It's actually a pain, somewhat.

Aline: -_^ 

I actually wanted to get to the preliminaries, but nooooo, I HAD to end the daft thingamajig. 

Aline: Eeeeoh. OK. I guess it's the prelims next chap, eh? 

Yeah, I guess. But I definitely know that many of you readers will be wondering WHY or WHOM I described as the fourth person with Miss Devil Satan and her bombshell airhead and self-loving "friends". Could she be, Gohan's future mate? I'm not telling! 

Aline: And neither am I, for once. This is too evil to 'fess up on. Hehehehehehe. *Goes into EVIL MAD SCIENTIST Mode*

Now you see where I got my evilness as an authoress from. *Sigh* PRELIMS! *Joins Aline in EMS Mode*

~*~

Translations:

Meito: mate 

Gaki: brat

Muten: Master (?)

Nonburu: number

Hitotsu: one

Yuujin: friend

Chibi: dwarf, small person 

Niisan: elder brother (informal)

Otoutosan: younger brother (formal)

-san: Mr. 

Juuhachi: eighteen

Otouto: younger brother (informal) 

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

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Nooka: What do you mean, what is Gohan like? O.o 

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Shea Loner: I haven't seen a fic w/ a hate/love relat. either, except on _Predator and Prey_ by **Psycho Ann**… Glad you like it! Btw, are you by any way self-named after Shea the Elf in the book series The Sword of Shannara? 

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Kakkabrat: are you sure about the Kais? Thanx for your rev. anyway! I like your stories btw. UPDATE! And tell me what I have to read now…

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Shadowphoenix2: Yep. Gohan just killed Yamu and Spopo(b)itch. I said three warped kis tho… Ahh, but Gohan had said earlier in that chap that Babidi wasn't on Earth, right? And where Babikini goes, so too goes Dabura…

Yep, still insane. 

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SS2 Megami-sama: Yep, your nickname for Videl was proudly displayed. Yes, you have reviewed before. Do you have THAT much of a, er, BAD, short term memory? O.o

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CW: Lime will not be mentioned AGAIN. No you didn't miss the he's-dead-how-can-he-age thing. And… it's still a mystery to me. HEY REVVIES! YES, YOU WHO ARE NOT **CW**, help us out here!!! Just read **CW**'s review for the 15th recorded chapter and review yourself! Thanks! :-) 

Alyra Sarienna: Shameless plug. 

Aleandra: Yep! :-)

AS: -_-;

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Mouse: *Gasps indignantly* Well I'm glad you reviewed at last, **Mouse**! Nice name by the way, does it have anything to do with your personality, perchance? :) Where was I when you first started reading? 

Ahh, the dreaded C choice again!!!

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Rarity88: I know exactly what you're talking about with the fave lines. Hehe I loved writing them. ^__^

Choice A and not too cheesy… Sorry! 

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Simba_rulz: I know! I'm a Gohan FANGIRL (ha! More emphasis on fangirl than you have! :P) and I go for Gh/V's too! Geez! Doesn't look like I'll be writing one of those tho… *Shrugs* Viddy IS in the story!!! ^o^

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DBZ Chick1: Gosh! Everyone seems to HATE Videl! All right, another vote for choice B…

~*~

Poll Tabs

Choice A: 4

Choice B: 5

Choice C: 2

It's still a close call, but if I were to end this now **B** would definitely win. It already seems to be heading in that direction, but PLZ vote! But not if you have ALREADY! BUT, you may go under another name and vote for the same choice again! I wouldn't know the diff, right? Hehe 

Choices are…

A) Gh/V

B) Gh/OC

C) Who cares? Let's just get on with it! 

VOTE FOR MAYOR FOR MAYOR! (Cheesy Powerpuff Girls Episode… Let's not go there) VOTE YOUR CHOICE FOR CHOICE! YEAH! (Geez, I might as well elect myself to the Jr. Varsity Cheerleader Team while I'm at it! ^^;) 

~*~

Thanx to **child of the shadow light**, **Nooka**,** Shea Loner**,** DespairingAngel**,** Choice B **(nice name), **kakkabrat**, **shadowphoenix2**, **SSJ4-Kitty**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **CW**, **Mouse** (*Still gasping indignantly* :P ), **BJ**, **Rarity88**, **simba_rulz**, and **DBZ Chick1** for their awesome reviews! 

*Counts number of reviews* Is it just me, or am I more popular now? O.o KEWL! 

So who's going to pass the prelims? And what's with the new girl with our familiar characters Videl, Erasa, and Sharpner? Find out, only, on **Vigilante Angel**. 

Can't wait to write the REAL tournament, 

AAS & Aline, from **AASN**. 

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AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.

The Legacy Of The Angel Is To Be Continued…


	17. Chapter the Sixteenth: Vacancies

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Sixteenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: If you sue me, then know you're only going to get an empty Fritos corn chips bag. ^^; 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Chapter Fifteen was revised, if anyone wants to know. It's not a great big overhaul, so you don't have to go back and re-read it and re-review, but there are changes here and there. Grammatical, mostly. (Thanx **Gohan's Kat**) 

Finally, the prelims! No, these are not the prelims where everyone has to fight to get their position. Nope, these are the Punch O' Meter 500 prelims, yet another piece of evidence that shows how whacked the series are. Sigh. 

Well, I don't think there are any more things to talk about, is there Aline? 

Aline: Mmm, no I don't think so either. Except that the poll is still going, and the situation is QUITE different from last time. Heh. 

Yeah. Hehe. I may just ignore the poll and write my own relationship, which I'm not telling you about— 

Aline: And neither am I—

And I probably will lose some readers, but that's that! 

  
Aline: Indeed. 

Now let's get on with it! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

__

"Trunks, you're just jealous that I have an oniisan and you don't!" 

—Goten, Almost At End of Fifteenth Chapter 

~*~

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

"Wow, you're a strong little guy, aren't you?" Goku grinned as Goten gave him a half-hug around Goku's head. Gohan smirked at the sight. He then said to Trunks, "So it's just you and me up here, huh, Trunks?" 

Trunks said, "Good. I don't get you to myself that much." Gohan nodded agreement and allowed Trunks to take hold of a handful of his thick black spikes. 

They then started off after Vegeta and Piccolo, leading the group to the practice arena.

~*~

[Same Time]

18 tapped the Punch O' Meter 500 mechanism for the second time. This time she obtained a reasonably decently controlled score of 234, well enough to get her into the real tournament without overly taxing the monks standing by. (Haha, Star Wars!) 

Goku walked up to the machine and walked away with 267, an impressive hit for an almost there SS3. 

Krillin came up next and also tapped the machine lightly. 256 blinked rapidly on the little screen above the pummeling thingamajig. (Anyone notice that **thingamajig**'s my new fave word for the next three months plus?!?!) The ex-monk grinned teasingly at Goku. These friends were still competitive in some aspects, but their rivalry was a far cry from what it had been in the past. Goku just smiled himself. 

Piccolo with 248 exhibited the obvious greater Namekian-expected control over his strength; Gohan placed his hand within a breath of the pummeling cushion. Instantly a number of 198, 199 vacillated on the screen before finally settling in on 198. This caused the monks even greater risk of cardiac arrest. The machine was _not_ supposed to waver back and forth between numbers like that! It was supposed to instantly show the number at once. The monks then knew they shouldn't have ordered from CheepPlastik Inc. 

Videl stared as well. The guy hadn't even touched the think and he got a 198! Then she steeled herself. She was going to get a higher score than him. Show him that hard work was the only way to get something. Not with steroids or some other drug. (Tsk, tsk, Videl… *Wags index finger in scolding manner*)

Gohan walked away. He passed Vegeta and gave him a warning glance in yet another brief suicidal-moment-o'-courage. Vegeta just scowled. But the patented Prince Vegeta Smirk™ didn't stay off his face for long. It never did, when it came to fighting. 

The Saiyan Prince stamped up to the Punch O' Meter 500 and lifted his heavily muscled arm (AAS: …*Drools*…). He looked sidelong at the Z-senshi for their reactions, and smirked again at their apprehensive faces. Still smirking, the only purebred Saiyan _alive_ returned to the machine and punched. 

He wound up with a shocking score of 755 and a fainted duo of monks. 18 had to take over for them as Goten and Trunks stepped up. The Android regarded them coolly as they looked with distaste at the curious thing before them. She did offer a word of caution. 

"Go light on the thing, boys. Think of it as a human, only weaker, if that helps." 

Meanwhile Gohan muttered to his father's arch nemesis, "Nice, Vegeta." 

Vegeta smirked. He was surrounded by not a single weakling human baka, all of them having either backed away from him or quit altogether. Sensible of the quitters, foolish of the much-depleted few who stayed, amongst them Videl. After all, the Devil had a rep to keep up, did she not? Foolishness, foolishness. 

Goten won the Rock-paper-scissors contest to go first. Trunks "humphed" but allowed his friend to go first. 

Goten knocked on the cushion with one finger. He may have tapped a leetle too hard, though. 315 blew up on the screen. 18 noted this dutifully and waited calmly for Trunks. He came up and also poked the cushion thingie. Being the son of a Saiyan Prince who beats you almost to death to get you stronger has certain advantages. One was that you have a lot more control over your energy than a spawn of Kakkarot, at least. 

Oh c'mon, what am I saying?! 

Trunks got a 299. Not bad, kid, not bad at all. 

Of course, it's not an especially big deal to us DBZ fans, but to the pathetic humans, well… Let's just say that they knew something was off with this group. Kids weren't supposed to get over 200, let alone even compete in the dang tournament! More quitters followed the previous, muttering about it being an off year for them. Leetle, leeeetle did they know…

Videl, of course, remained. Last time she checked, she was still the daughter of Hercule; World Martial Arts Champion for two times in a row (XP). Now she stepped up. 18 noticed her with the same type of indifference as she had to the children before Videl. That made the raven-haired beauty a little ticked off out, not to mention weirded out. She was the daughter of Hercule, for Kami's sake! 

Pushing those feelings deep down, Videl focused on the task at hand. Winding up, Videl kicked at the pummel with all of her might, and then some. The Satan was left without breath, and the machine rebounded with an awesome number of 172 that totally deflated Videl's spirits. 

18 jotted down the number. 

By this time the monks were coming to. 18 serenely handed to clipboard and pen to the first conscious monk and walked away, Marron trailing along behind. The Z-senshi was not long in collecting themselves and shooting away from the scene either. 

Videl Satan-glared™ at their backs. Consoling herself with the assurance that she or her father would beat them, she muttered under her breath, "Jerks. Think they're so tough." 

Videl checked to see that the monks were okay, then started off to the arena herself. 

~*~

True to the popular belief of the few people who stayed at the prelims, the Z-senshi passed. Of course, so did Videl. A man named Killa, an African or with relatives from that area had come through, as well as a hugely overweight Arabian. Also to pass was a pink-colored guy with horns on his head. If the horns didn't scare ya, then the slitted eyes, fanged smile, and/or the cursive M on his forehead did. There was another one with the M, but the blue-skinned, horn-less, strangely clothed alien with completely yellow eyes wasn't as scary. He was almost funny to look at, even. If only it weren't for that darned M. Gah. 

Two other people came in as well. They were also dressed strangely. What looked like a tunic and leggings outfit and a shawl tied around their waist made the frontal appearance. Red boots came up to their knees and earrings of different colors, yellow for one, and blue for the other, completed the eccentric wardrobe. One was a sunburned-looking raisin, and the other was a lavender Mohawk. They entered only as Kibito and Shin. Only Gohan knew their true identities. 

Gohan discreetly strolled over to them and worked his way to their side. He walked along with them, crossing his arms over his chest, for a while, until Shin turned his head and said, "Hello Gohan." 

Gohan smiled and said, "Hey. Glad to see you made it through. Thanks for that spell, by the way. I'm sure it's going to help a lot against Majin Buu." The Kaioshins could detect no sarcasm or humor in his voice, but they did not entirely believe he was sincere with his thanks. Nevertheless, Shin nodded. 

"You're welcome Gohan. We need all the help we can get in defeating Buu. Now you're sure that you did all the things you needed to?" Shin asked anxiously, although he expertly erased that from his voice. 

Gohan nodded all seriousness once more. "Yes, Shin, I have. We just need to get rid of the wizard and his three remaining followers. I believe I will leave the wizard to you two, if you wish, while I and the rest of the gang deal with the fighters." 

Now Kibito frowned. "Have you told your "gang" about this threat?" the A. Kaioshin asked. 

Gohan shook his head. "No. But they certainly will know once Babidi's followers here put their plan into action." Kibito nodded sharply, lapsing back into his perpetual intimidating silence mode. 

There was silence for some more time, until Gohan said, "Well, I'll leave you for my family and friends now. Take care you two." He left behind the Kaios of the Highest Plane of Heaven as he made tracks to the kis of the Z-senshi. 

~*~

"Gohan, you're disappearing a lot today. Wonder what's up with that, bro? Anything we should know about?" Krillin asked the newly reappeared demi-Saiyan. 

Gohan smiled at the ex-monk. "Nah, not really. Just talking with the competition, that's all." The demi-Saiyan dismissed the question with a shrug and a shake of the head. 

Krillin nodded. "Oh, okay. Well, then, let's go in and eat, huh?" He was rewarded with an emphatic nod and a stomach rumble. Krillin grinned patiently at the unembarrassed demi-Saiyan as they went into the building with the annual pre-fight all-you-can-eat buffet, established in honor of Goku when he came there for the second time. 

Minutes later, the whole group came out and started walking to the courtyard where the drawing of the slots were going to take place. Goku commented with a groan, "Man, nobody punch me in the gut when they come up against me. I'm so full I'd probably throw up all over the tiled arena. Haha!" 

Vegeta added his two cents into the conversation with a brash, "Then, Kakkarot, I'm going to punch you in the gut!" 

The Saiyan Prince had changed into a more suitable outfit for the tournament, from an all blue Earthling-style outfit to his traditional blue gi, which had been contained in the duffel bag he had brought. Not only was he dressed in the gi, but his white gloves (which supposedly kept his hands clean from all the blood he shed in his previously murdering life) 

"Aw man, no mercy!" complained Goku. 

Along the way, the group passed a blonde woman reporter and baseball capped photographer. The reporter was asking every fighter where he or she had come from and who they were and all that. The photographer simply zoomed in on them. They came up to Vegeta and Piccolo, who only ignored the baka humans with their baka camera and walked on. Goku, however, had the good manners to stop and try to answer the blonde's question about where had he gotten his halo. 

"Um, well, you see, I'm dead, you know." He smiled at them. The blonde looked skeptical, but murmured, "That's nice. No, really, where did you get the halo from?" 

Goku blinked at the reporter. But before he could explain further to the reporter that he was actually dead, Gohan dragged him away, saying that, "Dad, I don't think that these people want to hear our death stories." Goku shrugged and went along with his son. 

The reporter and photographer looked confused. Even the other boy believed that the man was dead? And the halo was hovering over the other person's head too! What was this halo trend about?! 

The pair would get no answer as the next group of dejected fighters ousted from the prelims moseyed on up. 

~*~

They were assembled, all sixteen of the fighters who had passed the prelims and the announcer and monk team for the drawing of the slots. The announcer-and-tournament-manager, Jared, had greeted Goku and Krillin with a buoyant, 

"Hey Goku! Glad you're here this year. The past tournaments without you have been capital B **B**oor-ing. This tournament should really be exciting now." Then Jared had leaned in conspiratorially and jabbed Goku in the abdomen, "Say, you're really the one who beat Cell in the Cell Games, right, right?" Goku and Krillin had grinned and flashed "Peace" signs at the dude. Jared had commented on the fact that two kids were here as well, reminiscent of when Goku and Krillin had been unknowns at their first tournament. The two former students of Muten Roshi had smiled at that memory as well. 

But now it was down to business. 

Jared called out that he would "be calling out everybody's names. When I call your name, please come up and draw a ball. The balls will have numbers on them. The number on the ball you draw will be your slot. The faster we can do this process, the faster we can get out onto the arena. Is that all clear?" He received the consenting nods and continued. 

"All right, first, we'll start with our defending champion from last year, Hercule!" 

Hercule sprang up from his spot and strutted over to Jared. He reached into the blue box and drew out one of sixteen glittery green balls. Jared took notice of the number and wrote "4" on his clipboard. The clipboard happened to be the one which 18 took and returned, but oh well. 18's handwriting was clear and precise, no problem with it. 

The monk with a walkie-talkie related the number and fighter's name into the walkie-talkie. On the other side of the line, the other pastor told another of the monkshood what he had been told. The other brother then wrote Hercule's name on the appropriate number on the set up easel. The audience cheered as Hercule's name came across to them. 

Back in the quiet courtyard, Videl was next. She reached into the box and came up with the number "8". The whole write-talk-write combo went into action again, fairly quickly, but too long to a certain hot-blooded Saiyan around here somewhere. 

Goten was called up. The cheery mini-Goku skipped up to the monk who held the box. He grinned™ at Jared and politely said "Thank you" to the monk, who was bending down low in order for the chibi to reach into the box. The number who selected the chibi in this case was "5". Goten Grinned™ again, reminding Jared of a much younger Goku, before the chibi skipped away again. 

Shaking his head clear of those thoughts, Jared looked over his clipboard again. "Pintar!" he shouted. 

The rumbling fat Arabian with his large body and very little head walked up, reached into the box with some difficulty, and handed the "16" ball to Jared. 

"All right, Dabura!" (Haha!) 

The pink Majin grinned wickedly. As he passed Gohan, he muttered out of the side of his mouth, "You had better watch out for us, Saiyan." 

Gohan retorted, "The same to you, Majin." The look on Dabura's face probably would have been priceless, had Gohan even turned around to see it. As it was, the Majin simply moved on. 

"Ahh, okay. Number 13, is it? Okay." Obviously Jared was just as astonished by Dabura's appearance as Dabura himself was by Gohan's statement. (Did that sentence even make sense?) 

"Goku! Your turn!" 

Goku Grinned™. He strolled up to the box-bearing monk and asked him how he was doing. 

"Fine. And you?" 

"I'm feeling great! OK, here you go!" Goku surrendered his "2" ball to the proper authorities and walked away, whistling as he went. Jared shook his head as the number and name went down the monkshood relay. 

"Where's Majunior?" 

A white-caped and –turbaned green man came and went, leaving a "10" ball in the hands of a very concerned Jared. 

"Uh…ok, whatever. Gohan?" 

"Here." The demi-Saiyan struggled over to the box, mostly because a certain lavender hair was hanging onto his leg. Finally there, Gohan picked a ball. As he was rummaging in the box, Jared eyed the monstrous sword on the fighter's back. 

"Uh, Gohan?" 

"Yeah?" 

"You do know that you're not allowed to fight at this tournament with any weapons, unless they're natural?" Jared said, pointedly looking at the broadsword on the demi's back. 

"Oh, that's all right. I'm not really going to need it until later. Thanks for the reminder, though." Gohan pointed out that his number was 15, pitting him against Pintar for the last match in the tournament first round. Jared nodded and called out, "Trunks! Where are you, Trunks?" 

"I'm right here. You don't have to yell." The tug on the announcer's suit pants brought Jared's attention to the other chibi of the group. It was the lavender haired kid who was hanging onto… uh, Gohan?, Gohan's leg when he came over. Ya know, those two just looked soo familiar, but from where? 

Jared forgot the puzzling events as Trunks drew "1", matching him up with Goku for the first fight in the tournament. (Heh, do I see a pattern here?) 

"Vegeta" stomped up afterwards, alienating Jared and the two other monks with his "stupid humans" attitude, and stomping off after he drew "12" (which, coincidentally, is the same number he drew in the series. O.O). 

Jared looked down his list and saw "Kibito". The sunburned Kaioshin came over without having the man even open his mouth, surprising Jared and giving a "11" ball to the monk with the walkie-talkie. That rivaled him with Vegeta, a match that I would not want to be in even for my life. 

"3" chose Krillin, and Killa claimed the "7" spot as his own, therefore having Krillin fight Hercule and Killa against Videl for those first round matches. Krillin was ecstatic with his choice, and Killa wasn't too disturbed about having to fight Videl either. 

"Pui Pui", that other Majin servant, breezed through, giving himself the "9" slot against "Majunior", and abandoning his maniacal cackles into the air. (Geez, that dude needs to get a life.) 

Finally "Juuhachi" was summoned. 18 arrived and drew her number. She gazed steadily at Jared, who was in quite a bit of confusion over her name. "Uh, you're 18?" 

"Was. Now I'm 6." 

"Ah. That places you with… Goten! Sure you'll be able to stand against that kid?" He teased. 

"Of course." Juuhachi gave the ball to her daughter. Marron looked up at the box monk, of whom we shall dub "Hub", and gave the orb back to him. Hub thanked the child politely and put the sphere back with the others already picked. 

The mother and daughter duo returned back to their ranks and Shin stepped up, again before Jared had to say anything. It was already clear what Shin's position was, but just for the official record, it was "14", making a most fearful match. For Shin was going head to head with Dabura, King of Demons. 

Jared looked at his clipboard, then at the easel on which yet another member of the monkshood had been copying down the fighters and the numbers they went with. 

"Okay, first match is: Trunks vs. Goku!" _Ooh, this should be interesting_

"Second match: Krillin vs. Hercule!" _Great, maybe that oaf will get defeated now_

"Third match: Goten vs. Juuhachi!" _Another interesting one_

"Fourth match: Killa vs. Videl!" _Hmm, hope Videl doesn't beat on the other guy too badly_

"Fifth match: Pui Pui vs. Majunior!" _I do hope that green guy is all right and not ill _

"Sixth match: Kibito vs. Vegeta!" _Go sunburn guy! _

"Seventh match: Dabura vs. Shin!" _Hope Shin wins _

"Final match: Gohan vs. Pintar!" _Who is that teenager?!?!_

"Okay! The matches are all set, let's go to the arena!" The tournament group moved off, the fighters sizing up their competition for the first round as they went. 

~*~

A/n: So there you have it! 

Aline: Great. 

Uh…? 

Aline: I'm fine. 

Yeah. 

Aline: Well, I can't help it if even muses get the FLU!! We are NOT immune to EVERYTHING, authoress. 

As I've demonstrated often, muse. 

Aline: There is truth in that statement. 

Ha!

Aline: Be quiet. 

No. 

Aline: *Sigh*

~*~

Translations:

Kaioshin: Supreme Kaio 

A. Kaioshin: Assistant Supreme Kaio 

Baka: fool, idiot

Muten: Master (?)

Chibi: dwarf, little one 

Juuhachi: eighteen (the number) 

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

****

Krista: Thanx for the no romance vote. I'm definitely thinking about no romance. 

****

Nooka: Yes, you Brits are crazi. Hehe. Another C…

****

Mayleesa: Another A vote…

****

Choice B (busy giving author imaginary tissues): Aw, thanx **Choice B**. No, you don't have to have the flu with me. *Sniffs, COUGHS, SNEEZE* *Pants* Ow… All right, all right! I'll make Gohan's future mate as strong as a SS2, even tho Gohan is SS3 now… (Hint, hint, he may or may not be further than that) You already found out who's going to steal energy. But what's this about this third follower?…

Yes you spelled Spopovitch right. No, Majin Buu is NOT going to be stronger. Even Goku in SS3 was no match against him! Nice idea about the Gohan pranks on Videl. Very nice, Hehehe… Now I just need a prank. Glad you liked my prank chappie! 

Videl? Lose in 1st round? Against Killa? Hmmm… (Level if show kept going, probably level 28. Hehe…) Thanx! 

****

Rarity88: Thanx for the B vote! Single Gohan is good too… STRENGTH ROX! 

Yep, back up votes allowed. Your vote was already counted for A, so that's not going in… heh. 

****

SS2 Megami-sama: You okay, **Megami**? O.o Geometry and Biology. Err… I can't tell you don't like Satan Sluts. How about a single Gohan, then? 

****

D.D.: All right, DemonDancing, two votes here! 

****

GohansKat: YOU FINALLY REVIEWED AGAIN!!! Yeah, I fixed those errors. Thanx for pointing them out! But I have a question. Which words? Now UPDATE! I want more! 

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DemonDancing: YOU'RE BACK AS WELL! YES! Heeheehee let the double Lexi chaos begin! Aww, poor Lexi is tired. It's a miracle she's still alive. Sigh. I know what you mean. Hey! I kno! Come up with an allergy so that you have to take Benadryl! It's a drowsy medicine guaranteed to make you sleep! In fact I'm sleepy right now! Hehe! 

****

DBZ Chick1; I updated! 

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Shadowphoenix2: C again! Yeah 3 headed human Cerebus! Hehe! 

Your duffel bag question answered? --

Yes you already killed Dabbie. Good for you! :P Dabbie's next, as well as Masin Buk! Hehe! 

I hate rain too, when I'm outside in it. Especially during cross-country. XP 

Yeppers poor Gohan got Jinxed! Hehe! I'm so meanie! 

****

Shea Loner: yeah well, I haven't even got through the first book yet. Bad me. 

Why thank you for the 4th person suspense thing. Heehee! 

****

Simba_rulz: We ALL love Gohan! ^o^ I updated! 

****

Meeeeeeee: That is a lot of e's. I got your vote in! Hhe ^^; 

~*~

Poll Tabs: 

Choice A: 9

Choice B: 6

Choice C: 6

Looks like **A** is pulling ahead here! Eh-hehe! Problem is, I really don't _want_ to write a Gh/V romance, if I _do_ write a romance at all. I have no experience _WHATSOEVER_ with those kinds of things _AT ALL_, so don't mind if I botch things up _A LOT_. It would also be helpful if I got tips. Eh-hehe! ^^;

Choices are: 

A) Gh/V (Ehhhh….), 

B) Gh/OC (plz PLEASE) 

Oooooor, 

C) You don't care whatsoever (PLZ NO!) 

Aaand possibly…

D) NO ROMANCE! (Let's see how many respond to this one…)

~*~

Thanx to **Krista**, **Nooka**,** Choice B (busy giving author imaginary tissues) **(Again, nice name), **D.D.**, **DemonDancing**, **GohansKat**, **simba_rulz**, **DBZ Chick1**, **shadowphoenix2**, **Rarity88**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Shea Loner**, and **meeeeeeee** for last chapter's reviews! 

All right, so who's going to win against whom? And I STILL am not giving you any info about that mysterious girl! Who is she and WHY did I even introduce her into the story?! Only on **Vigilante Angel** will you find out, next time. 

STILL can't wait to write the REAL tournament, 

AAS & Aline, from **AASN**. 

****

AASN; Keep reading, reviewing, enjoying, and get more.

The Legacy Of The Angel Is To Be Continued…


	18. Chapter the Seventeenth: Preeminent

****

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Seventeenth 

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: I definitely don't own Dragonball Z. I do own an O/C in here, but I don't own anything else. Well, the plot _is_ mine, but I…wait, I seem to be the only one with a guardian angel fic, so… I could safely suppose that this idea is mine as well! However, if it isn't, kindly don't correct me. I do like my grand self-delusions. 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: Eh…*Stretches spine* Yaaaaawn…*Smacks lips in preparation for wake-up scene* I'm going to be fine, as well as _Vigi Ange_, but this authoress is going to need a little encouragement today… 

Aline: -_^ *Brings in dog* Go to SP, dog! 

Dog: *goes to authoress and sticks _cold_ nose into authoress' face*

O.O! OY! I'm awake I'm awake! O.O! 

Aline: ^__^

Dog: *goes to Aline*

Aline: *Pats dog on head and commands dog to go away*

Dog: *Rubs head against muse's leg and vanishes to where Aline brought it*

O.o

Aline: ^__^ *Bursts out laughing* Hahaha! The look on your face was absolutely priceless! Hahaha! 

V_V Why me…? 

Aline: *Snorts with laughter* 

U_U

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

__

"Sixth match: Kibito vs. Vegeta!" **Go sunburn guy! **

—Near the End of Chapter the Sixteenth

~*~

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

"Okay! The matches are all set, let's go to the arena!" The tournament group moved off, the fighters sizing up their competition for the first round as they went.

~*~

[1st Tournament Day]

"All right folks! The slots have been drawn, the fighters are assembled, and it's time to rumble!" Jared cried to the audience. The audience responded with a terrific roar of "YEAH!" 

Jared did his usual display of tossing up his microphone and catching it behind his back and then bringing the mike back to his mouth. "OK then, before we start, the rules! (Ha! You thought I was going to make them show that stupid fake Cell Games tape! Ha!)" 

"The rules are as follows: There is no hitting below the belt, there is no pulling tails, arms, legs, or the performing of other dirty tricks. No weapons are allowed, unless those weapons are natural, like claws, tentacles, etc. If one of the fighters becomes unconscious or lands outside the ring, the other fighter wins. If both fighters are unconscious or are rung out at the same time, the match is declared a draw and will be resettled outside of the tournament under the supervision of myself and my colleagues." 

Jared stopped here in accordance to "boos" and "ya, ya, ya, let's move on here!" from the crowd. Jared knew this was all for the profession, however, and pressed bravely on. 

"If a fighter is killed in a match, the fighter who killed that person is declared the loser and the match is forfeited. If a fighter does not turn up for a match within 45 seconds, that match is forfeited and the other fighter wins by default." 

Jared finished the recitation of the rules. With a flourish, Jared tossed aside the rules and cried, "Let the tournament begin!" to the tremendous agreement of the audience.

~*~

Inside the fighter's lounge was another story. Hub the monk extended on what Jared was saying with the words, "The tournament runs all day in each of its rounds. The first round will take place all this day, and then tomorrow is a rest day for all fighters. The day after tomorrow, the quarterfinals will begin and end. There is another rest day after than, then the semi-finals and the finals, the final rest day, and finally the ceremonies.

"One more thing I have to add is that if two fighters do not show up for their match within 45 seconds, both are disqualified and the match is forfeited. We do not like tardy people at this tournament." 

Gohan leaned over to his father and muttered, "Like they ever did, eh Dad?" 

Goku turned and Grinned™ at his son. "Hehehe, that's right Gohan. They never did. Heeheehee." 

Gohan shook his head and turned his attention back to Hub. Goten looked up briefly between them but turned back to his ever-preoccupying task: watching the rather strange-looking frog in front of him. 

Gohan looked down at Goten and the frog. He raised an eyebrow at the familiarity of the frog, then narrowed his eyes. All of a sudden, a hand shot out like lightning and grabbed the frog. Ah, but the hand did not belong to Goten, nor Gohan. Nope, it was Goku. 

"Hey… doesn't this frog remind you of Captain Ginyu?" Goku said, peering at the frog. Luckily, Hub was done with his preachings by this time, so it was all right for him to break out like that. Whew, lucky shot. 

As Hub the monk bowed to the fighters and left the room, quiet pandemonium broke out not only in the corner where the Sons were chattering away, but in other areas as well. Luckily, I'm not going there. I'm only going to focus on Videl. For now. 

Videl was indeed bored. She looked around the room at the fighters occupying the space with her. Her eyes alighted on Killa, her opponent, but moved on as more interesting things took her attention. Her fine eyebrows raised at the rather fascinating sight of three males of assorted ages looking at a frog one held in his hands. They appeared to actually be sincerely interested in this frog. This Videl could only shake her head at as she moved on. 

Pintar posed no intimidation except for _Whoa. I hope that guy loses a few pounds the next time he comes here. I seriously don't think the tiles will be able to hold up under his weight. _Videl wrinkled her nose at Pintar. 

Vegeta was carefully scrutinized, Dabura and Pui Pui were meticulously avoided, and Krillin was recognized vaguely. Videl couldn't quite place her finger on where she had seen or heard of him, but he was not unfamiliar to her. 

Videl sized up Juuhachi with her daughter Marron by her side. This one seemed tough, if only by the way she regarded everyone with the same look on her face. Not even Dabura or that Majunior guy got any reaction out of her. 

Majunior sure was strange. Videl thought that she had seen many guys like him, tough and uncompromising, if she read him correctly. If. She couldn't exactly read him through his unfamiliar facial features, but she thought she had a good bearing at him. That is, until one of the frog males looked up and walked over to him. Majunior smiled, no, smirked, as the boy walked near. Videl was absolutely shocked by this. Majunior actually looked kind of nice when he smirked. 

Videl caught herself staring and turned forcefully away. She met the powerful gaze of the Moha…err, Shin, and the other one, what was his name… Kibito! That was it, Kibito. Videl then realized what they were doing and looked away from them as well. 

The young warrior caught a glimpse of striped cloth. She thought she recognized that striped cloth and hurried to it. Her suspicions were confirmed as she was faced with the faces of her three closest friends: Erasa, Sharpner, and Gabrielle. (And finally she is revealed with Jules Asner.) 

"What are you guys doing here? You know you're not supposed to be on these grounds!" 

Erasa giggled and flapped a hand at Videl. "Oh c'mon Del, who cares about such things? We're here, aren't we?" 

Sharpner smirked at Videl and flexed his biceps. "Yeah, Del, who cares? The man is in the house." 

Videl rolled her eyes at Sharpner. Gabrielle, on the other hand, shook her head. She added her own comment in the Great Persuasion, "Yes, Del, there are some people who care, but I don't really believe that you are one of them. You are bored, after all." 

Videl nodded. It was no surprise to Videl that Gabrielle knew that Videl was bored. After all, Gabrielle was psychic. 

"Brie" didn't really consider her talent as really all that much. "A little bit of a psychic", she called herself. This talent of knowing more in a situation than the average human did ran in the O' Hara family and had done so for many generations. It had started with one human waay far back in the Earth's timeline, too far back to really estimate, but it had been strong enough to reach the last descendent in the O' Hara line. It was a little wacko, if the Satan Gang could say themselves. 

The Satan Gang were convinced, however, that Brie's "a little bit of a psychic" ability was much more than that. For example, if Brie told you it was going to rain tomorrow, you had best be certain to bring your umbrella. It was going to rain. Another sample of Brie's powers was that if she knew a pop quiz was coming up on the history of the English language, voila! The pop quiz came on the exact day to the exact hour, minute, second that it had been foreknown. 

But Gabrielle was only a minor psychic. She couldn't tell you if your soul mate was going to show up today, or if Armageddon was going to be tomorrow. The Kaios did not gift her with that potential. Thank them as Brie did every day. 

"Yeah, I was bored. Thanks, guys, for coming out to relieve me from it anyway. But you gotta get back to the stadium now. The first match's starting!" Videl scolded. 

Erasa protested, "But Del, it'd be so much more entertaining here with you! I'm sure the manager would let us stay here with you if you used your influence on him! Please, Del, please?" 

Gabrielle looked sideways at Erasa. She turned to Videl and asked, "There are windows in this place, right? Do they show the sky?" 

Videl looked at the tiny slits they called "windows". She then looked at the doorway. "Well, if we stay by the door, then yeah, they would show the sky." 

Gabrielle nodded. She was a funny person. Not only was she psychic and strange in appearance, but she liked being outside much more than being inside. This was true to the point where if Brie was inside and she couldn't see the sky, she felt majorly claustrophobic. But if she could see the sky, she was fine. The Satan Gang respected that phobia and tried to accommodate their surroundings for the mental health of their friend as much as they could. 

Speaking of being a little weird, there is one more strange thing about Gabrielle. Not only was she paranoid about being inside, but Brie liked to keep to herself. Even though in kindergarten that hadn't been true, nor in second grade, from fifth grade on, Gabrielle had offered less and less info about herself. Her lifelong friends in the Satan Gang couldn't tell you what Gabrielle's favorite band was, or her fave color. They didn't even know if she had a crush on anybody. Gabrielle Fiolena O' Hara was truly a recluse. 

Sharpner was completely ignored except when he was pulled in with the girls to the doorway. As Videl had said, the first match was getting underway. Goku and Trunks were facing each other across the ring, one challenging the other to take it easy on him, while the second fighter was simply smiling in delight of the situation. 

Jared looked at the two fighters. He saw that they were ready and shouted for all to hear, "BEGIN!" 

~*~

[Match One]

Trunks was the first to start the match. He sprang forward and shot at Goku. He managed not to fly, though; one of Gohan's many warnings ringing in his ears. He had to make do with moving around on foot instead. He had also been told not to go Super Saiyan either, so this fight was definitely going to be a drag. A _long_ drag. 

Trunks planted his fist straight onto Goku's face. Not waiting for a response, he thrust his feet on Goku's chest and back flipped off of him. Trunks landed on the ground and sped to Goku again, thrusting out a punch. But Goku caught it and twisted it, managing to spin Trunks totally off the ground and making Trunks land on the ground on his bottom with a clearly audible _thud_. The audience winced, as did Trunks, but the fight didn't stop. 

Trunks got up and dusted himself off. He squinted one eye up at Goku, sizing him up, before he slowly slid into a fighting stance again. Goku grinned again and slid into his own. It was a breathless moment in Time, the whole universe, even the very notion of Time, seeming to hold its breath. 

Then a slight whistle sighed. Two bodies were seen flashing everywhere all at once. Trunks beat on Goku only to have all his punches, kicks, punch/kick combos blocked, caught, or dodged. Goku was simply having a surprisingly hard time keeping up with Trunks' furious attack. The older Saiyan hadn't known up to now the true extent of Trunks' potential. Now it seemed all too real as Goku blocked this and dodged that, spun out of the way of this and caught that. It was a dangerous ever-twisting game of off-balance for Goku and Trunks. 

Once Goku got the hang of Trunks' attacks, though, it was more than easy to predict the next move. Until…

"HA!" Goku gasped in surprise and phased out of the way of the oncoming ki ball. The ball whizzed by and curved into the air. Trunks had enough control over his ki beam, thanks to Gohan, that he managed to get it not to hit the audience. 

Goku and Trunks stood across from each other. Dust from their activity brushed by the two, obscuring the scene from the audience for one brief second. It was the briefest second in all of Time, but it was enough for the humans to miss out on the biggest hit of the match. Unfortunately, we humans, being in the grandstands along with all the other inferior humans, missed it too. Drat. 

In any case, Trunks lay on the ground outside of the arena with a stunned look on his face. Goku stood in the middle of the arena with a pleased Grin™ on his everlastingly cheerful face. Jared and Hub looked in between these two, wondering what the heck had gone on in that single split-second of Time. 

Jared had to collect his thoughts after a tournament fight for the first time in years. Trunks was getting up by the time Jared finally succeeded. Jared hurriedly looked up at Goku and asked, "Hey Goku? What happened? We missed it, you two were so fast." 

Goku rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Oh, hehe, nothing really happened. Trunks just ran at me and gave at me three really killer punches. He kicked once too, but I caught them all. I then dropped Trunks' leg and punched him nine times. I punched him twice in the face, once in the stomach, an uppercut three times to his chin, and three times to his back. The last one sent him out of the ring. That okay?" 

Jared nodded, his head whirling after Goku's description. This was just like the time when Jackie Chun and Krillin had fought each other, waay back in tournament history. Exactly like it. Except that there wasn't quite so much a fantastic demonstration this time. 

Trunks walked along the edge of the platform until he got to the doorway. He was hailed by Goku's "Hey Trunks! You did quite well. I didn't expect you to be so strong!" 

Vegeta interrupted with a brash, "Well, what did you expect, Kakkarot? He is the son of the Saiyan Prince." 

Goku rolled his eyes as Trunks nodded, prideful of his dad's apparent approval in him. It was indeed rare, for Vegeta never did this kind of thing to anyone, not even his own meito. So it was a high endorsement the Prince of all Saiyans had just bestowed upon his gaki. 

Jared announced that "Goku wins match # 1! Now onto the second one! Will Krillin and our current champ Hercule please come out?" 

Goku jumped off of the arena and bypassed Krillin on his way in. "Hey Krillin, good luck against Hercule!" 

Krillin rolled his eyes at Goku. "Right, Goku. I appreciate your concern." 

"Not that, I meant, good luck on controlling yourself against him! Gohan told me all about Hercule trying to steal credit from us for the Cell Games, so good luck!" Goku smiled. 

Krillin nodding in true understanding. Kami knew that Krillin was going to need that luck against Hercie. Especially when Gohan called, "Take him for me, will ya, Krill?" 

Krillin looked back and waved, "Sure bro! Don't worry about it! I'll make sure you get your revenge!" Gohan laughed and waved Krillin off. Lucky for Hercule that he didn't have super sensitive Saiyan hearing, or he would have wet his pants so bad at this realization. After all, he didn't quite yet remember where exactly these guys were from. But hey, everyone has a bad memory sometime, right? 

Well, Krillin sure was going to jog Hercule's memory a bit, as soon as the match started. 

~*~

Videl and Co. watched the pair of Goku and Trunks stride by. Videl had been able to track a bit more of their movements than anybody else, but she still hadn't been able to get the whole thing. Gabrielle, however, knew all about it. There were advantages to being psychic. 

Right now, however, that little fact did not play a part in this situation. For right in front of the Satan Gang's faces was a very, very, very shocking discovery. There were people out there who could put the whole perception of speed, strength, _reality_, in total chaos. Not just one, but _two_. And one just happened to be a kid. 

"Stranger things have happened." Not true in this case. Definitely not true. There were no stranger things to have happened than this discovery, none at all.

~*~

A/n: The ending there's a little whacked, but it's what I could come up with after a long period of not writing _Vigi Ange_. I kinda had to get back into the flow. 

Aline: I don't see why, authoress. 

It is your fault, muse. You _had_ to take that vacation break in the middle of the year, you know. 

Aline: Yes, well, I would do _anything_ to serve myself, _including_ getting rid of these ideas. They just keep on flocking to me, even in the middle of a cruise trip. 

Which reminds me, Aline, how did that go? 

Aline: I don't really want to talk about it. I just need to make a mental note never to take a cruise to Barbados again in the middle of drunken people. 

O.o 

Aline: Yeah. I couldn't stand the stink of beer and wine everywhere, so… 

You what, joined them? 

Aline: No, I hauled myself overboard. It's a good thing that I know how to swim. 

-_- Stop spinning yarns, 'Lean. 

Aline: I'm not, Panthie. 

You really did swim back to the Americas and back to **AASN**? 

Aline: Yep. Cross my heart and hope to die. Hey! Why don't I take you to my branch of **AASN** and prove to you that I _did_ swim up all the way from the Caribbean? 

After the reviews, please. 

Aline: OK. 

~*~

Translations:

Juuhachi: eighteen

Meito: mate 

Gaki: brat

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

****

hsb: Maybe, maybe not. 

****

Camaro: Japanese is just a popular language to mix in w/ English for DBZ fics. It is DBZ's original language, after all. Oh well. Glad you like my fic. 

****

That lil' ol' Blue Girl: Oh yeah, unscrewing your eyebrows is way cool. |P thanx for commenting on my first chap. I re-read it myself and was like, "Whoa! Definitely too long of a chapter." Oh well, it's up there. Can't do anything about it. *Shrugs* 

****

dan: Gohan w/ Gabrielle. Hmm… I don't know why she isn't in the tournament. I guess it's because she doesn't feel like it, I guess. *Shrugs* Great to see you again! 

****

Max Krugman: Thanx for your advice. You know your answers from my emails. I'd take your advice, if I knew what you were talking about, but since you offered, I'm just going to disregard it. However, I see your points. (Note to any reviewers who wish to know: THIS IS A FLAME!)

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bj: I definitely agree with you that Videl is too bossy. She should get off her high horse sometime before she meets Gohan in the series. 

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Frying Pan of DOOM: GO SUNBRUN GUY! LOL! Got your **A** vote in all right! 

****

Shea Loner: How about that? I didn't keep you waiting for the 4th person any longer, now did I? But what's it about Brie that makes her what she is? O.o 

Thanks to you guys for writing thought provoking reviews enough that I wrote back an answer! 

~*~

Poll Tabs: 

Choice A: 10

Choice B: 12

Choice C: 6

Choice D: 4

It looks like **B **is back and in control! Go **B** voters! *Wild cheers from **B **voters* Yeah! And while I can't say that I've been impartial in all this, I've managed to stop myself from sticking my own vote in. ^__^ 

How many chapters has it been? O.o Only 3?!?! Oh well, good enough for me! Heh! ^^; 

POLL CLOSED! Sorry to those who wanted to vote! ;) Betta luck next time! ;)

~*~

Thanx to **Dark Blue**, **hsb**,** Camaro**,** That lil' ol' Blue Girl**,** Freaky_Person**,** THEDARKONE18**,** dan**,** Max Krugman **(courtesy only),** BlackFireDragonK**, **Mayleesa**,** SS2 Megami-sama**,** bj**,** Frying Pan of DOOM**,** Shea Loner**,and** DBZ Chick1**, for last chapter's reviews! 

What exactly is Gabrielle's purpose for being in this story? Why is she psychic, claustrophobic, and practically a recluse? What's going to happen in the rest of the first round? Only on **Vigilante Angel** will you find out, next time. 

Ready to write the rest of the first round and the Buu Saga, 

The ShadowPanther & Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do at **AASN**. Enjoy. 

The Legacy Of The Angel Is To Be Continued…


	19. Chapter the Eighteenth: Secondary

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Eighteenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Munching on leftover New Year's candy* Eh, wha? 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: 0_-

*Silence* 

-_0 I'm keeping a sharp eye out for my muse. She's in a terrible rage today, and I want to keep out of her way. I _don't_ want one of her slaps today. That would hurt waay much more than a normal slap from her. Shh…

*Creeps around* *Pokes head into hallway* *Looks around* 0_0 Oh, no. 

*Withdraws head carefully* *Transforms into a panther and slinks out of area* 

*Re-transforms* This is not good. Enjoy your reading while I try to survive this night…

*Screen switches off* 

Real Authoress: *Shakes head* I REALLY gotta stop watching so many horror movies. Ezspecially with those exams coming up next week. Gaah…

~*~

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Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

__

"Well, Krillin sure was going to jog Hercule's memory a bit, as soon as the match started."

—Near the End of Chapter the Seventeenth

~*~

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

Well, Krillin sure was going to jog Hercule's memory a bit, as soon as the match started. 

~*~

Videl and Co. watched the pair of Goku and Trunks stride by. Videl had been able to track a bit more of their movements than anybody else, but she still hadn't been able to get the whole thing. Gabrielle, however, knew all about it. There were advantages to being psychic. 

Right now, however, that little fact did not play a part in this situation. For right in front of the Satan Gang's faces was a very, very, very shocking discovery. There were people out there who could put the whole perception of speed, strength, reality, in total chaos. Not just one, but two. And one just happened to be a kid. 

"Stranger things have happened." Not true in this case. Definitely not true. There were no stranger things to have happened than this discovery, none at all. 

~*~

[1st Tournament Day]

"Please welcome for the second match our fighters Krillin and our current champion, Hercule!" Jared shouted into his microphone. 

The audience simply went wild. Hercule grinned and sauntered out onto the tournament arena. He was wearing his usual ugly brown gi and white pants, with the addition of a white cape flung around his shoulders. The World Champion threw up his hands in victory signs at the audience. 

Krillin regarded Hercule with something akin to amusement as he stepped up on the tiled arena. Hercule was still flashing "Victory" and Ginyu Force-ish poses at the crowd. When Jared asked him if he was ready, however, Hercule looked at him and at Krillin. He organized himself into a state of semi-focus, if only to throw his cape off into the audience and creating more uproar. Krillin waited patiently once more as they all waited for the audience to settle down. 

Finally it did and Jared asked both fighters again if they were ready. Krillin nodded and Hercule did another of his boastful routines, but finally it was time. 

"Begin!" 

~*~

[Match Two]

Hercule looked down at Krillin from his very tall height. The buffoon threw back his head and laughed at the preposterous idea that a midget could ever give him a challenge. Krillin raised his eyebrows as Hercule continued to guffaw loudly. Hercule stopped laughing and said smugly, "You think you have a chance against me? You're just a midget. You'll never land a punch on me!" 

Krillin was totally unimpressed. He coolly responded, "Well, the way I see it, I won't have to. You'll defeat yourself." 

Hercule puffed up at that. He drew back his fist and told Krillin in his booming voice, "Oh you think so, huh? Take this!" The champ shot at Krillin and put all of his strength into the punch and knew the other person was doomed. 

However, the punch went past Krillin and into open air. Krillin and sidestepped slightly a long time ago, and Hercule had punched into the space Krillin had used to occupy. Seeing as the champ had landed his fist on air, all of his momentum carried him straight to the tiled floor. He landed with a heavy _thud_ onto his face. 

Krillin, beside Hercule, smirked a bit at the funny scene. The ex-monk sobered down slightly when he realized how he was acting; so very similar to Vegeta! Not a happy thought at all. 

Hercule got up holding his face. Krillin watched him for any surprise moves; a tactic learned from his early, early days in his fighting career. It was not as if he needed it now, but old habits do die extremely hard. 

The defending champion staggered up to Krillin, how faced him calmly. Hercule growled, "Now you're asking for it! You're going down!" very unimpressively. Krillin, as usual, was stoic. This tiny human had faced down worse, waay worse. One measly human spitting in his face was nothing in comparison. 

Hercule, enraged even further by Krillin's apparent non-response, drew back his fist again. He let it fly, but again he punched fruitlessly. This time, though, Hercule was still standing. He was being upheld by Krillin, which was unusual in itself, but what was the eye-opener about the situation was that Krillin was using only one finger to block Hercule's big meaty fist. Hercule looked down at Krillin's slightly amused face, which suddenly morphed into a memory, one that Hercule had not thought of in a long time. Nor did he want to think of this particular one. It was a memory of a very determined boy facing up cockily to an ugly grasshopper man. Hercule gasped and lunged back. The champ stumbled away from Krillin, who put down his finger and watched him go. 

The audience was stunned. What had happened? Jared put this question into words as he yelled, "Wow! It appears that Krillin has done something to Hercule that none of use could see! Can the champ recover?"

Hercule, however, was not in the mood of false bravado. Instead, he was more like cowering at one of the corners of the arena. The audience was still shocked, but one recovered sufficiently enough to shout, "Go Hercule!" Half of the audience followed faithfully, while the other half emerged from their stupor. The other half interpreted Hercule's actions the other way and started cheering for Krillin. Krillin's half was so loud that a few of Hercule's half switched sides. A competition started up amongst the cheer-ers, drowning out Jared as he attempted to calm them down. Finally he gave up and simply watched. 

Krillin made as if to step forward in Hercule's direction. Hercule cowered immediately and yelped out, "Don't hurt me!" 

Krillin answered, "I won't if you apologize for your spiteful comments about my friend the Gold Saiyan." Under the cover of the crowd, Krillin could have should "Hercule is a lying coward!" and the crowd wouldn't have heard. But Jared could, and he was actually enjoying every moment of Hercule's torture. 

Hercule yelped again. Krillin walked over to him and stopped five decimeters away from the "champ". Krillin leaned over and cupped an ear. 

"What? I can't hear you!" (Spongebob Squarepants, hear I come!) 

Hercule whimpered again, this time a little louder. Krillin replied, "I still can't hear you!" 

Hercule finally exploded loud enough for even the crowd to hear. "I APOLOGIZE FOR SAYING THOSE MEAN THINGS ABOUT THE GOLD SAIYAN! THAT BOY ISN'T A TRICK USED BY CELL BECAUSE CELL WAS A COWARD! THOSE LIGHT THINGS AND THAT GOLD SHINY THING AROUND THAT BOY HAD AREN'T TRICKS EITHER! THE BOY WAS REAL AND COULD ACTUALLY FIGHT! I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, I'M _SORRY_!"

The crowd was totally silent. Krillin, however, looked smug. Jared had a grin on his face too. But the smuggest and the biggest grin in the stadium was to be found on the face of Gohan. 

Videl was stupefied. The Gold Saiyan wasn't a lie? That boy was actually a hero? Videl trained her bright blue eyes on her father. They stabbed into his back, trying to pierce through the ugly brown gi to find the reason for all this. Was it for…fame? 

Sharpner and Erasa were equally as surprised. They supposed, however, that Hercule had had a good reason for saying those things about the Gold Saiyan. Still, it was kind of nice not to have to believe that stuff about the world's savior. They didn't have to deal with Hercule's slander anymore. It had been getting tiring. 

Gabrielle, however, was nonplussed. She, of course, had known the truth about the Gold Saiyan all along. She hadn't said anything to Hercule about it because she had known that that would mess up the future. And Gabrielle's #1 priority when it came to the future was never mess it up. But she had been permitted by the Fates to cryptically warn the champ of the coming of this event, much like an oracle. Only an oracle that knew not the future, but only the present as it stood now. And of course Gabrielle knew the past, but it was the same to her as it was to any other human: mere memories. 

Back to the audience. The cheering was slowly starting up again, but this time they were 99.96% wholly for who else but Krillin. Four people were still for Hercule, but it was a hopeless case, and they knew it. 

Krillin looked up and around at the audience. He grinned at the huge amount of support he was getting and looked back down again at Hercule. Hercule looked at Krillin and gulped. Suddenly this midget was looking very tall in his eyes. Krillin stepped forward a step again, making Hercule scramble away. That action meant that Hercule found himself on nothing, then panicking, and falling flat on the ground, again straight onto his face. 

Jared cried, "Hercule lands out of the ring! That makes Krillin the winner!" All of the audience cheered at this. Krillin walked off the platform with one fist in the air and his other hand in his pocket. 

Hercule cowered behind Jared until Krillin passed. Then he flashed out from behind the announcer and strutted inside. The defeated champion was stopped by the sight of one very scary thing: 

The very accusing and very hurt expression in the eyes of one Satan Videl. 

Hercule shuffled forward, not noticing the heated glance of one unnamed teenager, as he brought himself to the punishment of his daughter. Now just to take on the punishment. 

Hercule started to open his mouth, but Videl shut it with "No. I don't want to know why you did it, or even why you confessed to it now. All I care about is that you lied to me about the Gold Saiyan. Right now I'm just going to hang with my friends until I fell like talking to you again." 

Videl then turned around and presented her father with her back. Hercule, from what little interaction he had done with her over the last seven years, knew that once Videl made up her mind, there was no changing it. The young Miss Satan was stubborner than the most mule-headed human, animal, what-have-you, out there. It was better to concede defeat for now and try again later. He shuffled off to what had been his own personal suite. 

Gohan studied Videl's back. It seemed that Videl was not as snotty as he had first thought. He still thought she was bossy and nosy, but her actions over the next seven or so days would determine his final opinion. As for young Miss Satan's friends, well…

A certain Goku-clone broke the reverie of the eldest demi-Saiyan _dead_. Gohan looked down at his younger brother. 

"Yeah, squirt?" 

"Niisan, it's my fight next! Can you wish me good luck?" Goten asked. 

Gohan smiled down at his favorite sibling (Reviewers: Goten's his ONLY sibling! SP: I know!). "Good luck, squirtmeister." 

"Thanks!" Gohan watched Goten skip out of the fighter's lounged and onto the arena platform. 18 strolled by, waving off the well wishes of Krillin and Marron. Gohan smiled at her. 18 smiled slightly back. Son Gohan's Grin™ was waay too infectious to not smile back. Gohan nodded to the Android and said, "Good luck, 18." 

18 replied dryly, "I'm sure I'll need it if you think so." 

Gohan nodded smilingly. 18 left him behind and walked up to the platform. She jumped up onto it, ignoring the stares she brought. The platform was, after all, five feet high. No human could jump that high, not even Hercule. 

Jared shook his head. Things were heating up in the tournament like they hadn't done so for years. The announcer smiled at the antics of Goten as the chibi jumped up and down in excitement. Jared had to pause a while longer while Goten started cartwheeling around the squared arena. When the mini-Goku settled down (as in rocking back and forth on his heels) the blond-ish haired man looked from one fighter to the other. 

"Are you ready, Juuhachi and Goten?" 18 nodded and Goten replied with an enthusiastic "Yeah!" Jared nodded, swept his arm up, and dropped it, yelling, "Begin!" 

Goten dropped into a defensive stance. 18 slid into a stance of her own. The formidable Android-turned-mother looked down at the challenging expression of Goten. Neither moved for two full breaths. Then two dust clouds were kicked up, even on tile, and the battle between the ages began.

~*~

A/n: Sorry guys for not updating in so long. Homework, writer's block, muse wasn't showing up, not any of my other muses were slapping' me, school, laziness, the usual. I take any and full responsibility. 

I also, as I have said in the beginning of this _eighteenth_ (OMG!) chappie, have final semester exams next week. *Face-faults* Already we're reviewing for it in my classes, and the review things are just bogging me down to the ground. Not even my muses can pry me up off of it, not that they were really around to try. 

Nasty cliffie there, tho! Haha! I was debating whether to end it on that note or not, but I decided to and here's the result! Muahahaha! |} 

Seeya sometime after exams!!! *Crosses fingers and wishes desperately for the best* AIEEEEEEEEE!!!!!! 

PS I can't believe we're moving into the twenties with this fic. And my plotline isn't even close to being over yet! Aieee! 

~*~

Translations:

Juuhachi: 18 (the #)

Niisan: elder brother (hi big brother!)

Chibi: dwarf, small

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

****

Choice B (18): You're welcome for choosing **B**. But why not thank those who voted for it? 

Questions (From 1-9)

1. Goku is WAAY stronger than Trunks is, even in base mode. And I'm not good at writing fight scenes. 

2. The fight may be more spectacular that way, but remember, Trunks and Goku are in front of humans who don't know about ki! 

3. Why Gabrielle: Because I liked it. 

4. No. 

5. Hmmm…human 

6. You bet! 

7. BAD, baby. But then you knew that already. 

8. _I_ didn't. The random selections I was doing for the tournament DID. 

9. Nope!

Merry Xmas! Happy New Year! (Belated) 

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Frying Pan of DOOM: I was waiting for that question! Heehee! All I can say is…WAIT AND READ! *Snickers* :P MERRY XMAS! (Belated)

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simba_rulz: YOU'RE BACK! YES! What's the BOO for? The fact that your vote didn't win? Aw! LOL I can tell those banana runts from Candyopolis are scrumdidaleeumptious. Hahaha! You know, I had to copy that sentence from your review, I was so sure I would misspell it. Heh. ^0^ Hey, are you okay with the metric system in here? I know that the metric system is totally NOT understood in America. I just wanted to know if you were ok. 

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Mine own name is mine: Sorry, MONIM, you're a little too late for your vote to count. *Wistful grin* Thanx tho! 

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Nooka: Stupid ff.net is right. O It has been a while. SORRY! Happy about the K/H fight? 

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K1K: What does your name stand for? Thanx for the compliment! I updated! 

~*~

Poll Tabs: 

****

B wins! Now just to see who I can pair him up with… *Rubs hands thoughtfully*

~*~

Thanx to **Choice B** (Chaps 17 & 18), **Frying Pan of DOOM**, **simba_rulz**, **Mayleesa**, **Mine own name is mine**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Nooka**,and **K1K **for last chapter's reviews! 

So how's the fight between Goten and Juuhachi gonna go? And what the HFIL is going to be done with those Majins? Only on **Vigilante Angel** will you find out, _sometime_. 

__

Almost ready to write the rest of the first round and the Buu Saga, 

****

TheShadowPanther & Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do at **AASN**. Enjoy. 


	20. Chapter the Nineteenth: Tertiary

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Nineteenth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Busy playing **Fire Emblem** on Game Boy* *Looks up* Oh who cares?!?! *Goes back to trying not to get anybody killed by that stupid baka Ursula*

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

Aline: -_- The authoress is a coward. Enough that she's hired me to do the author's note at the beginning of this chapter for once. She has asked me to explain to you that "school and humongous writer's block have totally stopped me up on this story." She also wishes to reassure you that this story is not being discontinued, and since ff.net has reinforced the no a/n only rule again, here's some story. 

-_- I REFUSE TO EXPLAIN THIS ALL TO YOU! *Crosses arms and stomps away Vegeta-style* *Mutters* Stupid authoress making me forego my muse's rights if I don't do this idiotic author's note… 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence(s) of the Story So Far:

__

"Hercule looked at Krillin and gulped. Suddenly this midget was looking very tall in his eyes." 

—At end of the match between Krillin and Hercule in Chapter the Eighteenth

~*~

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

Jared cried, "Hercule lands out of the ring! That makes Krillin the winner!" All of the audience cheered at this. Krillin walked off the platform with one fist in the air and his other hand in his pocket. 

:~*~:

Hercule started to open his mouth, but Videl shut it with "No. I don't want to know why you did it, or even why you confessed to it now. All I care about is that you lied to me about the Gold Saiyan. Right now I'm just going to hang with my friends until I fell like talking to you again." 

:~*~:

__

"Are you ready, Juuhachi and Goten?" 18 nodded and Goten replied with an enthusiastic "Yeah!" Jared nodded, swept his arm up, and dropped it, yelling, "Begin!" 

_Goten dropped into a defensive stance. 18 slid into a stance of her own. The formidable Android-turned-mother looked down at the challenging expression of Goten. Neither moved for two full breaths. Then two dust clouds were kicked up, even on tile, and the battle between the ages began._

~*~

[1st Tournament Day]

[Match Three]

18 and Goten dashed at each other and landed in a flurry of punches and kicks. Goten managed to surprise 18 enough to get in 5 punches, 7 kicks, and half a ki ball. Why only half? 18 kicked the ball out of Goten's hand before it was fully formed. 

18, on the other hand, was not so surprised as to not get in 17 punches, 25 kicks, and 0 ki blasts. 18 didn't really care for ki blasts, which was a surprise considering how many she had used with her twin brother seven years ago. Figures. 

The last punch 18 thrust out spiraled Goten down, down, down, down into the tile behind him. You would think that these two were in midair, the way that Goten fell so slowly. But finally Goten landed, only to spring back up and attack again. The two launched back at it again, providing much eye exercise for the puny humans who were trying to watch. This time this category does not include us, for the manager of the camera crew slowed down the fight for the authoress and readers. Isn't that so nice of Thomas? 

It wasn't long before Goten was sent back into the arena. It was the same spot as before, only this time the tiles sagged under Goten's momentum. A human could practically hear the tiles cracking right there and then. A Saiyan and any other alien forms at the tournament _could_ hear the tiles cracking. But no one said a word. 

Goten staggered up from the ground holding his head. That punch had hurt! Lifting his hand away from his face, Goten glared at 18 with his one good eye. The other was half-closed in a temporary squint. On a human, that eye would have been closed all the way in a very colorful and a very big black eye. That is, if the human had been able to withstand the blow. But Saiyans don't get black eyes, only wounded prides and broken bodies. 

18 looked down at Goten and casually appraised him in her Android way. She reflected that whoever had trained Goten in fighting had done well; Goten even had the stubborn pride so characteristic of his Saiyan heritage. Well, it was just a smidgen too bad that Goten couldn't ascend to Super Saiyan. That would have been a good fight. Ah, but Goten wasn't there yet, so 18 was going to end this fight now before it got out of hand. 

The Android crouched into a position that briefly, in an awkward and symbolic sort of way, resembled a tiger. She stood in that position for only a few seconds (which is a decent-sized time on our way slowed-down film), before she moved fast, faster than she had moved all fight, way too fast for any human to see. Goten was surprised to see 18 racing so fast, but he recovered sufficiently enough to raise his arms and crisscross his forearms. 18 jammed hard on those forearms, blocked a sneak kick at her legs, and flipped away from a punch of Goten's, all in one move. Goten pressed forward into 18's range, his fists a blur of flesh and blue sleeves. But 18 responded just as quickly, her hands a blur of flesh and striped sleeves as she blocked every one of Goten's fists. It was indeed a good fight, even with Goten not in Super Saiyan. 

At last, 18 saw her opening. It was only 35.97921 seconds after she went on the offensive, but a half-minute fight is a long one. It wasn't exactly 18's idea of a "quick ending," mind you. The Android saw the opening as Goten left his right side unguarded. The Android struck for it, getting some satisfaction at last as the chibi stumbled and rolled across the tile floor. 18 chased after him, making sure that Goten rolled not only across the full length of the tile arena, but right over the edge. 

Goten landed with a thump on his side on the grass growing outside of the ring. He opened his tightly closed eyes and looked around for the enemy. Seeing no one, he slowly uncurled and looked around. He froze as he saw 18 standing above him, towering over him like a monster in one of his yearly nightmares. 

18 looked down at him. They stared at each other, ignoring the calls of Jared, "And Juuhachi is the winner! Wow! What an amazing fight! Let's give a round of applause for these two awesome fighters!" and of the crowd as they roared enthusiastically. Jared really knew how to work the crowd. 

Finally 18 said, "Nice fight, kiddo. You actually made me work." Goten beamed brightly, again bringing a small smile to 18's face. That darn Son Smile was at it again. 

"Thanks! You're really strong! As strong as—" Goten's soprano voice was interrupted by another voice, a deeper baritone. 

"Hey guys! Nice fight! I haven't seen 18 move that fast in a long time." 

Goten and 18 looked around at the intruder. Krillin stood there with Marron behind him. Gohan peered over Krillin's head at Goten and 18; the composition of the vastly over- and under-matched figures was greatly amusing. But Goten, being the naïve person he was, missed the funniness of the sight, and 18, being who she was, didn't laugh. 

"Thanks!" Goten said again. Goten climbed up from his spot on the ground and skipped to Gohan, who herded him back to the tournament lounger. 18 and Marron went back to the fighter's hotel. Since her fight was over and she had no wish as to know whom she was fighting next, why stay? Krillin stayed, of course. He was the official encourager in the group. 

Jared cleared his throat. The arena didn't look too bad on the top, but he swore he had heard the tiles crack when Goten landed that second time. Jared wasn't so much of a puny human as to not miss the situation when it was right in front of his eyes, or ears, in this case. He knew the tiles had cracked. 

Just to make sure the arena could hold up, Jared climbed up on top of the arena and stomped on the area where Goten had fallen, twice. It held. The announcer stomped again. No response. Jump. Nope. A punch! Nada. Jared gave up and simply stepped on the area. 

Nothing. It was good. Jared nodded in satisfaction. He tapped his mike to get the audience's attention. He got it quickly, although some stragglers were still talking. They were quickly shushed. 

"All righty! That ends the third match! Now, for the fourth match in the first round, numbers 7 & 8, Killa aaaaaaaannnnnnd… Satan Videl!" 

Videl watched as her opponent, Killa, stood up from his perch near the windows and stumped out of the lounge. She accepted the good lucks from her friends, even Gabrielle, and walked confidently out of the lounge herself. She quickly caught up to Killa, who regarded her impassively, and surpassed him in mounting the steps to the arena. Killa followed not long after. They squared off and faced each other, Videl intimidating with her big pigtails and fierce stare, Killa impressive in his military garb. It was a mighty interesting scene. If only we could see it. 

"Fighters ready?" 

~*~

Translations:

Chibi: small, dwarf

Juuhachi: 18 (the #)

~*~

__

"Dragonball Z will return in a moment."—Voice from Toonami 

~*~

Aline: *Looks around* No authoress. *Looks around some more, sees panther creeping up to her* A panther. Wow. 

Panther: *Glares at Aline* *Stalks angrily to authoress' seat* *Transforms* 

SP: *Sits in authoress' seat* Hmpf! *Refuses to look at muse* I hope that a certain muse around here has told my reviewers my reasons for being a _coward_ and a _blackmailer_. *Rolls eyes* 

Aline: *Takes hint and leaves* 

SP: Well that's done. Now, as Aline said, minus the insults, well, go back and re-read what Aline has explained to you and refused to explain to you. Vegeta-style. I'm not dead, no, no, but when a certain muse strikes (Aileron for Digimon!) and another muse does not (ALINE!), well, what can I say? WRITER'S BLOCK! So don't hurt me!!!!!! *Writhes in chair under reviewer's Death Glares™* 

Aline: *Pops head back in* It wouldn't do you any harm to bribe your readers, SP! *Disappears again*

SP: -_- *Gets up* I have to teach a certain muse a lesson in humility. Please excuse me. *Leaves* *In far background, reader can see a flash of pink light and distantly hear **_COSMO LASER BEAM SUPER!!!!!!!!!!!_** in background*

SP: *Returns* *Taps fingers on keyboard* kdi;oaeujndsa.lkjdf lkjd *Looks down at computer* *Sees mess her fingers created* Oops… *Grins Sheepish Son Grin Imitation™* Hehehehe…

Another nasty cliffhanger! Sorry it was so short! I'm going to do longer next time! *Writhes again* Ow, my back…

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

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SS2 Megami-sama: Jeez, Falcon! Are you going to stop reading this ficcy? If so, don't! I need you! Besides, I'm not planning the romance for a loooooooooong time yet! There's still plenty of single Gohan time left! *Looks at Falcon with pleading eyes* DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE! 

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Concerned: Of course this story is a mix of ideas that I borrowed from everybody, including my muse. That is what makes this story so original. It uses ideas and mixes them together into one whole being that is different from any other fic. I applaud your concern, but I feel that it is based on the very reason that this fic exists and continues to live. Thank you for your time. 

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simba_rulz: BOO! Yeah, what _is_ going on with kids today? I mean, I've seen _so_ many authors who could be better writers if _only they knew how to spell! _DUDE!!! I'm glad you can do the metric system. I know I can't. Hee! *Sweatdrop* I'm in high school too! Hee! *Bigger sweatdrop* ^0^ 

…Simba, I think that you had better lay off on the sugar. Maybe give some to me? Heehee *Evil cackle* 

…Maybe not 

Can I have that Cell Games poster? 

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Shadowphoenix2: All right, Skadu! You answered this time! YEA! Thanx! You have excellent observation skills, because I *do* try to include everybody in my fics. Poor Yamcha, tho. I haven't even mentioned him in here once, so I have to rethink that…

As for in character, really? I didn't notice. I just write the characters as I think they would act, with no particular effort really being put into writing that character, unless of course I have writer's block. Although the question of the review really is, how can _I_ get writer's block if I have muses? O.o

Yay, my fic is comedic! Yay! 

MUSES SUCK, ESPECIALLY 11 OF THEM! *Twitches as muse slaps SP* Ow! What'd you do that for?!?! Oh wait, I have an idea! *Disappears under pile of muses* Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! OW!!!

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Nooka: Yay! The K/H fight was funny! YAY! 

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Joe: ? I have no idea what you're talking about. What wouldn't stop what? How is that related to Gohan living in Otherworld? I don't get it. EXPLAIN, please! *Holds out bowl* 

~*~

Poll Tabs: 

O.o I'm not sure that **B** is going to be written. Thanks to one of my reviewers, I'm starting to doubt that that romance option is actually going to be written. I'm still not telling you with whom the romance was going to be with, but maybe it really isn't important now. O.o

~*~

Thanks to **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Nooka**, **simba_rulz**, **Angel35**, **Hiaburi**, **Joe**,** Concerned**, **Shadowphoenix2**,and **DBZ Chick1** for last chapter's reviews! 

By the way, where's **Mouse**? Unless s/he has been keeping track of the fic and not reviewing again! **MOUSE**!!! Oh **MOUSE**!!! Come out, come out, wherever you are! 

Speaking of missing peoples, **CHOICE B**! **CW**! WHERE ARE YOU!!!!!? 

So is Killa actually going to defeat Videl? And the next fight after that is between Pui Pui and Majunior! _Finally_ those Majins will get the punishment they deserve! Or will they? Find out, only, by clicking in to the next **Vigilante Angel**. 

Happy Valentine's Day! Go suck on some heart candy! :}

Glad it's the weekend,

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TheShadowPanther, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do at **AASN**. Enjoy. 

P.S. DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!!! REVIEW!!!!! 


	21. Chapter the Twentieth: Fourth

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twentieth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: What is it that I'm supposed to say up here? What? What's that? I don't own DBZ?!?! Really? I didn't know that! Thanks for telling me! 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

SP: *Gapes* 

Aline: ^_- *Shoves authoress out of way and looks at stats* *Whistles* Nice, SP. Over 150 reviews for 19 chapters! Not bad, kiddo, not bad at all. 

SP: *Shoves Aline out of seat* MY seat. And what do you mean, "kiddo"? You're younger than I am! 

Aline: No, I'm not. I'm ageless. 

SP: -_- Uh-huh. Then how come you never came into existence before Vigi Ange came up? 

Aline: I _was_ in existence. I just didn't show up to you, m'dear, until you came along and had the proper brain structure to accomplish my goal. *Clearly ad-libbing and knows it* 

SP: *Amused* Uh-huh. Right, Aline. I believe ya. *Turns to computer and ignores muse as she starts creating next chapter settings* 

Aline: -_- *Slaps SP and leaves* 

SP: *Rubs cheek* OH! GREAT IDEA FOR THE DOUBLE PUI/PICCOLO FIGHT! *Types madly* ENJOY! 

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence(s) of the Story So Far:

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"It was only 35.97921 seconds after she went on the offensive, but half a minute in a fight is a long one. It wasn't exactly 18's idea of a "quick ending," mind you." 

—Almost at end of Match Three with 18 and Goten

~*~

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

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"All righty! That ends the third match! Now, for the fourth match in the first round, numbers 7 & 8, Killa aaaaaaaannnnnnd… Satan Videl!" 

Videl watched as her opponent, Killa, stood up from his perch near the windows and stumped out of the lounge. She accepted the good lucks from her friends, even Gabrielle, and walked confidently out of the lounge herself. She quickly caught up to Killa, who regarded her impassively, and surpassed him in mounting the steps to the arena. Killa followed not long after. They squared off and faced each other, Videl intimidating with her big pigtails and fierce stare, Killa impressive in his military garb. It was a mighty interesting scene. If only we could see it. 

"Fighters ready?"

~*~

[1st Tournament Day]

"Fighters ready?" Jared cried into his mike. Videl nodded wordlessly, as did Killa. 

Jared swept up his arm and held it in the air. For countless seconds the arm resisted gravity before it finally gave in and dropped. It gathered speed and went faster and faster, the hand attached to the arm hanging on for dear life. Down the limb whistled, until finally the arm received orders to stop. Only a few seconds after Jared had held it up, his arm was facing the ground, the hand hanging limply down as it sagged in relief of the reprieve from the wild, wild adventure of being dropped. 

"BEGIN!" 

~*~

[Match Four]

Videl took five steps and punched Killa in the face. Killa quickly recovered and blocked Videl's next attack. He tried to sweep Videl's legs out from under her, but Videl was setting up for a double-footed kick and dodged him. She also managed to plant her feet on Killa's chest, knocking him away from her. 

Killa had to take several involuntary steps backward. Several as in twenty. These twenty steps took Killa right to the edge. He was so close to the edge of the arena he made the audience hold their breath in anticipation. 

Of course, Killa recovered. He charged back at Videl and feinted at her stomach. Videl went on the defensive for her solar plexus, only to feel Killa's firm fist in her face. The black-haired tomboy was knocked flat on her back. She got back up though. She had to defend herself again as Killa pushed the envelope. She blocked a kick and two punches before Killa inadvertently left an opening for her in his defenses. Even military men have their weaknesses. 

Videl took the opening hand opened with a barrage of punches designed to confuse the opponent. Killa saw through her strategy however. He blocked the punches meant to be blocked and dodged the others. 

Next Videl tried a kick strategy on him. She was more successful in this area, but Killa still managed to block her. He even took the initiative to twist his own body around and side-kicked at Videl in a karate move. Videl was unfazed by the damage and continued to attack. 

Seconds ticked by and the audience truly was enjoying itself. Here at last was a normal fight that it could see and hear. It was also lasting more than a half-minute in a fight, which was the way it was supposed to go. Not flashes of this and that, or no fighting done at all like with Krillin and Hercule. Here at last was a respectable fight with no confusion, no "What'd they do?" 's, and plenty of bruises. Life was great, finally. 

Videl was getting tired. This Killa was tough, always reflecting her attacks, and doggedly going on in the fight when innumerable other fighters would have quite long before then. Videl hated to admit it, but there was a dangerous possibility that she was going to lose this battle. 

Videl didn't know why she was doing this. It wasn't to uphold her father's reputation anymore, so what was the reason that Videl kept struggling with this fighter? Was it to satisfy her own need for love and attention from her father? If that was the reason, well go and screw that. Her father was nothing, had always been nothing. Deep down, Videl had always sort of known that her father was more hot air than substance and mass. Satan Hercule was 99% false bravado and only 1% mass. It was finally nice, Videl felt, to relieve herself of that doubt.

Except that Videl hadn't wanted to believe it. Her father was her father, after all. It was just that she was so disappointed in what her father had become that she hurt very deeply inside. The knife that had slowly been digging into her fragile heart ever since the Cell Games had twisted sharply and suddenly at the confession of her father at the hands of that midget. 

Screw her father. From now on, Videl was fighting for herself. She should have started years ago, but her father had managed to fool her too. Well, it was now that Satan Videl was here, and about time. 

Videl attacked again with new energy. She was fighting for herself and no matter how the fight ended, Videl would forever remember this day. She would remember it as the day she got her independence and forged a new frontier for herself. It was the day upon which Satan Videl, daughter of Hercule, ceased to exist and an entirely new person by the same name was born. 

Killa was surprised by the fervor his opponent was fighting with now. It was like she had broken out of a shell that had been hindering her previously. Killa bared his teeth in a grin; this was going to be a true challenge after all. He had been starting to wonder about that. 

Vegeta, back in the fighter's lounge, snorted. He was bored with this fight. The onna wasn't a bad fighter, for a human, but his fight was in two fights. The Prince of Saiyans was not known for his patience in any situation, especially if he couldn't blast things to Other World. 

Piccolo looked over at Vegeta. He recognized the snort as one of impatience. The seven-foot Namekian inwardly wondered how Vegeta had managed to last this long without blasting anything or anyone to Other World. Miracles did happen after all. 

Vegeta scowled at the Namek has he came over. While the Prince had an inkling of respect for the alien, it didn't mean he had to show it, did it? 

Piccolo ignored the scowl and told Vegeta, "Go outside and find something to do. You're fit to blow up in here." 

Vegeta scowled harder and stayed put. Piccolo refused to let Vegeta get to him, however, and continued to whittle away at the Saiyan. 

"I said go outside. Find Son or somebody worthwhile and do whatever you want. I'll let you know when you're up." Piccolo stated flatly. 

Vegeta snorted again. Although the mention of Kakkarot had stirred him up, he wasn't going to give the Namek the satisfaction of ordering him around. And so he stayed. 

The tension was relieved sharply when a familiar voice said, "Piccolo's right, Vegeta. Tell you what, why don't we go outside and you can show me just how strong you are. What do you think of that?" 

A callused hand appeared on Piccolo's left shoulder pad. It was followed shortly by a spiked head and Gohan's strong features, half-Saiyan and half-human. It was amazing, really, how smooth the mixture of Saiyan and human could be if the genetics were done right. Truly, it should be the Eighth Wonder of the world. 

Vegeta registered the first Kakkagaki's words and smirked. His black eyes lit up with such a fire that Piccolo was unnerved. Gohan smirked back with such an uncharacteristic evilness that Piccolo was, by that, freaked out. Vegeta turned away and stumped out the back door of the fighter's lounge. Gohan's face lost the evil smirk and reverted back to its normal Son Grin™. The demi gave his former mentor a pat on the shoulder pad and went to follow Vegeta. 

The audience gave a roar as Videl and Killa locked fists. They strained against each other, each giving the other all they had. Videl, even with her newfound independence spurring her on, was having a hard time overcoming Killa. He was just pushing and pushing and pushing against her. Videl could feel her guard crumbling and knew that she would not last longer. The proud tomboy refused to give in, however. She was fighting to the end, whenever that was. 

Killa pushed on the Satan girl. The grizzled veteran was surprised that she had lasted this long. Satan was certainly stronger and had more endurance than she had previously shown in earlier tournaments. That wasn't her fault, for all her opponents were weaklings in comparison. She was doing quite well against him, actually. Suffice to say, Killa was impressed. 

The fighters strained against each other again. They ignored all things that were distracting, such as ZTV cameras (SP: HEY THOMAS!), the audience, and even the announcer. The duo's whole world was centered around the other opponent and what the HFIL s/he was doing. 

Killa pushed on Videl again. And again. And again. The third time's a charm, as the saying goes, and 3's certainly a lucky number for Killa here. He was rewarded with a yield of one tile in the arena. Videl pushed back to stop the oncoming and progress slowed again. 

More ground was broken one exact half-minute later. Killa gained one more tile before the window of Progress closed again. Seconds ticked slowly by. Not a millimeter was gained, and not a millimeter was lost. It was a battle of survival now, not a petty game of who's stronger and who's weaker. It was a match of endurance. Muscles were screaming, cursing, and otherwise have temper tantrums, arms and legs were trembling like no tomorrow, and sweat was lazily dripping. Blue eyes stabbed into brown eyes, holding the gaze and turning it into a challenge as the mortal bodies below pushed and strained against each other. The world shrank again into two separate colors, blue and brown. 

More seconds ticked. Neither fighter gained or lost. The audience now roared whenever even the possibility of something happening showed up. Like when Killa broke the strainhold with a huge push. He flung his fists away from Videl, adding more force to the blow. The girl stumbled back the three tiles to the edge and hung there on the world's end. She windmilled her arms to keep balanced, but a grab on her arm from Killa definitely killed any chance of that. Killa used the girl Satan's momentum to propel her right out of the ring, ending the match. (Finally, my first pun on Killa's name. Took me long enough.) 

"Oh! And Videl is thrust out of the ring! Killa wins!" came Jared's call. Videl was brought back to reality by that voice. She blinked and looked around at the audience cheering. They were yelling, "Go Videl! Go Killa!" Videl could even hear things like "Wow! What an awesome fight! I'm fighting like that when I grow up!" "Yeah! Those two are soo cool! I'm going to ask for their autographs!" 

"Me too!" 

Videl heard another voice, this one deep and gruff, and looked up to see Killa standing in front of her, hand outreached. 

"You did well, Satan. You were actually stronger than I expected. I'm impressed." 

Videl smiled and accepted the aid. "Thanks. You were great yourself." 

Jared's voice cut in again. "Look at these displays of great sportsmanship! Wow! Let's have a round of applause for these two just for that!" 

A tumultuous roar of applause reached the ears of Videl and Killa. The fighters turned walked to the fighter's lounge in companionable silence. Videl had just earned the respect of not only an experienced fighter, or grudgingly of an impatient Prince, but she had gained the respect of herself that she had been lacking for several years. And frankly, it felt great to finally have it. 

Videl reached the comfort of her friends and saw genuine awe on the faces of Erasa and Sharpner. Gabrielle just tilted her head at Videl and gave her friend a thumbs-up. Videl grinned wryly in acknowledgement of the thumbs-up. She should have known Brie would know what Videl had gone through out there in the arena today. Still, it was touching to have one of your best friends give you a thumbs-up in appreciation of your struggles. It added to the Videl's sky-high ride of rediscovered self-esteem and adrenaline. Videl would even consider herself high right now, if it were possible to be high on feelings. 

Killa slipped out of the lounge and disappeared to Dende-knew-not. He would return in two days for the next round, but this fight he wanted to think about and store away in memory. It was a fight he would never ever forget, ever. 

Outside the fighting lounge, Jared was whooping away. 

"Wow! What a fight! That is definitely going into the highlights of the tournament! Right, Thomas?" 

The camera crew manager gave Jared a thumbs-up from behind his camera. 

"Right! Now, without any more stuff, let's welcome out fighters numbers 9 and 10, Pui Pui and Majunior!" 

The insane blue Majin sauntered out with a silent Piccolo following. Pui Pui clambered up the steps while Piccolo had to deal with Jared's request. 

"Uh, Majunior? Try not to get the arena broken. We just got it fixed it last year." 

Piccolo smirked. "I'll try." 

Jared grinned and said, "That's the spirit! Have a good fight, sir." 

"I will. Oh yes, most assuredly, I will." 

With those ominous words, Piccolo Jr., former Demon King and son of the late Demon King Piccolo Sr., mounted the steps to the tiled arena. 

~*~

Translations:

Onna—woman 

~*~

__

"Keep true, never be ashamed of doing right; decide on what you think is right and stick to it." —George Eliot

~*~

A/n: Wow, a lot of thumbs-ups and the words "pushing", and "straining" in there! Heh! ^__^'

Yet _another_ nasty cliffie! Wow! I'm going on a streak here! When will it end? LOL! Probably when the rest day starts, which is in more than a coupla chappies. Heh. Oh boy. 

Speaking of more than a couple chappies, I'm thinking that this story will have more than thirty chapters, maybe even well into the forties, perhaps. Whew, longest story I've ever written or even _attempted_ to write. Oh well, it's like I always say, the more chaps a story has, the more reading enjoyment a reader gets. *Sweatdrops*

~*~

To the reviews! (Of some, anyway)

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SS2 Megami-sama: Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! *GLOMPS Falcon* Thank you for not abandoning me! YAY! 

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King Jasbon: Wow! That is interesting! Kewl! Thanks for the info and the review! :D 

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simba_rulz: I AM THE MIGHTY AAS-SAMA! YOU _WILL_ SURRENDER TO ME THOSE POSSESSIONS OF WHICH I HAVE ORDAINED AS TO BE MINE!!!! *Glares*

*Laughs* You're so fun, Amber. But remember, I HAVE _YOU_ UNDER **_MY_** MIND CONTROL! YOU CANNOT RESIST! MUAHAHAHAHA! 

Aline: -_-' 

PS UPDATE RED LIGHTNING! 

AAS-sama *Bows*

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Mayrana: Heeheehee! Now you know how I feel when authors cut ME off with a cliffie! BLEAAAAGH! *Steams* 

I feel for you about the comp thing. Mine is SO slow, it takes FOREVER to do ANYTHING on it! Not to mention the frustration I go through when it decides to act up, as it occasionally does. GRR! 

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Shadowphoenix2: An endearing writing style, eh? THANX! You're making me blush, you! *Blushes* Hmpf! And I don't even try hard at writing it, either! It's natural! *Blushes* 

You think that my fights are good? I think I totally _stink_ at writing them, but since you seem to differ… 

Go Goten is right! Go Juuhachi, too! 

I have an admirer! YES! KEWL!!!!! Skadu, too! *Squeals* 

Happy much belated Loner's Awareness Day to you too! ^^;;

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BlackFireDragonK: You have Fire Emblem? IT ROX! *EVIL grin* I UPDATED! 

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Marshmellow13Dragon: You're welcome! I'm glad you like mi ficcy! I UPDATED! 

~*~

Poll Tabs: 

Romance is too far, far away to be thought about now. It might not even get to _be_ romance, it's so far away. ^_^'

~*~

Thanks to **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Nooka**, **simba_rulz**, **shadowphoenix2**, **Mayrana**, **King Jasbon**,** Mayleesa**, **DBZ Chick1**, **BlackFireDragonK**, and **Marshmellow13Dragon **for last chapter's reviews! 

Thinking about **AASN** and my name change, it's a little odd to be SP and have **AASN** as my company's name. I'm not going to change the name; it's just more than a little odd. I mean, **TheShadowPanther** and the **Aleandra Alyra Sarienna Network**? ^_^' Heh. OK. Oh well. Once you create a company, can't change the name unless another company buys it. 

O.o *Blinks*

…Nah. 

DIE MAJIN DOUBLE PUI! DIE BY MY PUNY HUMAN HANDS! JUST DIE! *Breathes hard and sees red as Double Pui dances tauntingly out of reach* 

*Calms down suddenly* -_- *Turns to Vegeta* You wanna do this one? 

Vegeta: *Smirks* 

SP: Go right ahead, V-chan. 

Vegeta: *Glares, smirks, and starts to kill Double Pui* MUAHAHAHAHA! 

SP: *Grins* It's always great to see V-chan enjoying himself on someone other than me. 

Bye! 

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TheShadowPanther, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do at **AASN**. Enjoy. 


	22. Chapter the Twenty First: Fifth

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-First

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Reviewers see SP being chased by FUNimation lawyers* 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: *Still sore from long run _away_ from FUNimation lawyers* Ugh. Don't bother me now. Just read the story already! 

Aline: *Raises eyebrow as looks at authoress* Make note to self: never make SP angry after being chased by FUNimation lawyers. 

*Glares at muse* *Screams* Thanks a lot for your sensitivity, muse! 

Aline: *Leaves* 

*Steams*

~*~

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Author's comment) 

~*~ = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

~*~

Favorite Sentence(s) of the Story So Far:

"If that was the reason, well go and screw that. Her father was nothing, had always been nothing."

—Near Beginning, in Match Four, of Chapter the Twentieth 

~*~

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

"Right! Now, without any more stuff, let's welcome out fighters numbers 9 and 10, Pui Pui and Majunior!" 

The insane blue Majin sauntered out with a silent Piccolo following. Pui Pui clambered up the steps while Piccolo had to deal with Jared's request. 

"Uh, Majunior? Try not to get the arena broken. We just got it fixed it last year." 

Piccolo smirked. "I'll try." 

Jared grinned and said, "That's the spirit! Have a good fight, sir." 

"I will. Oh yes, most assuredly, I will." 

With those ominous words, Piccolo Jr., former Demon King and son of the late Demon King Piccolo Sr., mounted the steps to the tiled arena. 

~*~

[1st Tournament Day]

Piccolo eyed the blue monster in front of him. He recognized the flourishing "M" on Double Pui's forehead as the sign of the Majin, but he had thought that the wizard would have at least _one_ stronger Majin servant than this one. Piccolo could feel it, Double Pui was waay below Vegeta's base level, and Piccolo, being only a shade weaker than that level, could dispatch of the Majin quite easily. 

If only Piccolo could kill in this tournament. 

Ah, but the Namekian couldn't, so that was a complete and utter waste of thought on someone who didn't even deserve it. For right now the baka announcer was asking, "Fighters, are you ready?" 

The blue Majin cackled insanely as it gave its nod of consent. Piccolo snorted inwardly at the Majin's less-than-immaculate behavior and gave a grunt of agreement. The last preparations out of the way, Jared repeated the process of the earlier matches, raising his arm and dropping it, to signify the match. 

"BEGIN!" he cried, only to have that announcement followed by a not-too-dignified "OW!" Luckily for Jared, he had taken away his microphone from his face, so the incident of Jared hitting his arm forcefully on his corner of the tournament arena went quite unnoticed. It was also quite lucky that Jared had become, over the years, somewhat more immune to pain than the average human, no doubt due to the slight and not-so-slight pains that came with being an in-arena announcer. 

~*~

[Match Five]

Double Pui and Piccolo circled each other, wary. Or rather, Piccolo stayed in one place, impassive, while Double Pui did all the circling AND cackling. (Gosh, wonder if Double Pui's vocal cords are in any way strained from all that cackling? Oh well.) Piccolo, however, could sense ki, which was a major advantage over Double Pui, who, unsurprisingly, could not. This just added to a list of advantages Piccolo had over the blue Majin, one of them being having more energy reserves. This, therefore, led to more strength and more endurance, so better make that three advantages. 

Double Pui, pausing behind the Namekian, studied the cape-adorned back of his opponent. It really was a pity the Namekian was so weak, Double Pui had been hoping for a more worthy adversary to fight. Oh well, it was enough to get a taste of how Namekians fought, more deliciously an old and very experienced one. It was better to showcase one's true abilities in later rounds, not the first, besides. But still…! 

Double Pui, thinking that Piccolo was being cocky, charged. His fist met not with, as the Majin had thought, the back of the Namekian, but with the green palm of aforementioned alien. Double Pui jumped back, or tried to, but a certain other fist and ability to stretch prevented him. 

In other words, Piccolo had stretched out his arm and punched Double Pui in the face. Talk about getting some of your own medicine. 

Double Pui scrubbed at his face. His hand (gloves? I can't remember what that insane blue Majin looked like in the series. A little help here?) came away with his green blood, obviously loosened from their vein containers by Piccolo's rather uncomfortably sharp claws. But instead of becoming enraged or wimpy, more insane cackles rang out from some _very_ overused vocal cords. 

"Ha ha haa! So you're actually stronger than I thought, _Namekian_. I may actually have a fight on my hands!" the Majin chuckled. 

Piccolo simply raised an eyebrow, or would if he did have one. He replied in his blunt way, "_You_ are going to have a fight. _I'm_ not. Weakling." 

_Now_ the insane Majin got angry. Took him long enough to be anything other than psychotic. "Weakling?! How dare you call me that?!? I'm stronger than you are by kilometers!" he/it shrieked. "I'm a (whatever he introduced himself as in the series against Veggie-chan. I don't remember, nor do I particularly care)! Babidi chose me as one of his henchmen! _Me_! Not my dastardly brother, not my cousin, the Dark Planet grant him peace of mind, _or _my _other_ dastardly brother! HE—CHOSE—ME!" (1, 1 1/2, & 9 3/4) 

Piccolo raised the other eyebrow, again if he had one, and replied, "Who cares, Majin, if that wizard chose you or not? You're a weakling, and not worth my time. However, since you've managed to get into the tournament, I might as well put up with you." 

At every sarcastic, but true, word that left Piccolo's mouth, the blue Majin was getting angrier and angrier. At the last word of the last sentence, Double Pui had had it. Yelling with all that his sore vocal cords could muster, Majin Pui shot at Piccolo, summoning all the ki that he could put into his fist. Time slowed down for the Majin as he actually flew to Piccolo and jabbed him in the face. Piccolo fell backward, ensuring victory for Double Pui, but not _quite_ in the way that Double Pui exactly wanted. 

Piccolo, was, in actuality, leaning back from the mildly dangerous punch to his jaw. Piccolo was uncharacteristically feeling rather like Vegeta (Gods save us) right now, and the puny demented Majin was going to feel his former-Demon-King wrath. 

Piccolo brought up his knee and jammed it so hard into the Majin's chin his neck actually broke. Not to mention that Double Pui was thrust so high into the air, it was a while before Piccolo, chained to the ground by his promise to Gohan not to fly, could next punch the psychopath. But come down Double Pui did, and Piccolo lit into him with all of the ferocity and utter unbeatability that marked the very fearsome albeit short reign of the former Demon King Piccolo, both Sr. and Jr. 

It was a while before Piccolo let up, but he had kept his promise to Jared: the arena was not totally mauled like last time. Nay, there was nary a scratch on it either. On the other hand, the authoress regrets to say that she cannot write the say about dear old, oddly amusing, psychotic and totally out of this world, Majin Double Pui, in the same way. After all, Piccolo's Vegeta-like performance had been the very definition of the two words "blood sport." 

Very luckily, the audience, who at first had been absolutely shell-shocked by the brutality of Piccolo's fighting, had quite suddenly appreciated it. For humans, for all that they are an advanced race with all their technology and all, can be every bit as single- and bloody-minded as Saiyans. Even worse actually, if they are the ones on the sidelines. A horrifying thought, indeed, but one that is, nevertheless, entirely true. And so it was true in this case. A little bit _too _true, even. The authoress will not repeat what some of the audience was saying, but let's just say that it was a good thing, as Piccolo not too happily pointed out before the match began, that the no-killing rule was in place.

Piccolo dropped Double Pui on the ground with a disdainful snort. He didn't know why, but it had felt good to beat up that insane Majin like that. Maybe it was the fact that the Majin had cackled waay too much for his liking or comfort, or maybe it was the fact that Double Pui was even a Majin at all. It could also have been that Piccolo had been frustrated these past two months, ever since Gohan had told him about Majin Buu in the first place. It was the knowledge that Piccolo could hardly do anything to save the Earth from Majin Buu if and when that monster was released that had driven Piccolo into such a frenzy; but after this fight, however, Piccolo was feeling much more like his old self. "His old self" meaning the combination that Piccolo, Kami, and Nails had become, and all three were now happy, although the Kami side was feeling a little reproving still. 

Piccolo snorted. If he knew the fortune of the Earth well, there was no "if and when" about Majin Buu's revival. Piccolo could only hope, as much as an old Namekian could, that Earth would not be destroyed, as it most likely was going to be. 

The Namekian snorted again at his oddly sentimental thoughts; when had he gotten so soft? No matter, the business with the Majin was done. It was on to the other Majin, and beyond. 

Piccolo stalked stiffly away, as only a Namekian could stalk stiffly, and left the platform. He disappeared into the fighter's lounge and went out the back door of there, much in the same way that Killa had, even as the power levels of a certain Saiyan Prince dropped sharply. 

~*~ 

Krillin looked at Piccolo's retreating back, awed. The black-haired midget hadn't seen Piccolo fight like that for a while. Last time, oh, maybe back, back, back, waay back when Piccolo was still an evil, evil, eeeeeeevil dude, and he and Goku were still rivals. Krillin still remembered their last tournament fight with shudders. 

Goten looked after Piccolo, an reverent look on his face as well. The youngest demi-Saiyan hadn't known Piccolo-san could fight like that! No wonder Gohan looked up to him like that! Goten resolved, as best as he could with his seven-year-old mindset, to always treat Piccolo-san with the respect due him, even though that's what he did anyway. 

Trunks also looked at Piccolo, wide-eyed. He thought the same things as Goten, only more along the lines of, "Hmmm…So that's why Dad spars with him every once in a while. He's good! Better than I always thought he could fight! I'm going to always stay on Piccolo's good side from now on." This revelation was followed by a nervous chuckle, quickly forgotten as Goten called to him. Trunks remembered what he wanted to Goten about in the first place and the two started plotting yet another one of their infamous Demon-Duo pranks.

18 just regarded Piccolo coolly. She always had known that Piccolo had evil buried deep inside himself, but not to this ferocity. 18 knew what it was that drove this ferocity, a thirst to prove oneself to the world that one was enough, even if that thirst led to evil. 18 found a newfound respect for the Namekian growing deep in her that would judge her mannerisms and actions toward him in the very far future. 

Goku simply scratched his head in confusion. Piccolo hadn't fought like that in a long time, why now? Maybe it was the fact that Piccolo hadn't fought in a tournament setting since the Cell Games. Actually, _before _the Cell Games. Piccolo hadn't actually _been_ in the action in the Cell Games. So was it the roar of the crowd that had caused Piccolo to fight like that? Or was it something else, something deeper, and more diabolical? Whatever it was, that was one creepy opponent out of the way, now to get the other. 

~*~ 

1) I have no idea if Double Pui even _has_ any familial relatives. It's something I made up on the spot. Crazy, eh? 

1 1/2) Who is Majin Double Pui to talk about giving peace of mind to his cousin?!?!?!

9 3/4) I've been reading Harry Potter again waay too much, hence the hyphenation dashes, which are, indeed, a punctuation commonly used by the honorable JKR herself. However, the little pun on the Platform can find its origins within my own twisted mind. *Vamp grin* 

~*~ 

Translations: 

Baka: Idiot, fool

~*~ 

A/n: Well, that was, rather, weird. I don't know quite why or how I wrote Piccolo in that fashion, but it seems that that's what my muse wanted written. I have no idea, though. I'll have to ask her herself. 

Aline: -_- Oh no you don't. I'm NOT giving you anything that indicates whatsoever how my brain works. I _do_ want to keep you off guard. 

You're doing that quite nicely, museling. 

Aline: *Odd look on face at nickname* 

*Smiles mysteriously* 

Aline: *Majorly weirded out* I'm leaving! *Popping sound resonates as muse "Disapparates"* 

*Shakes head* Ever since I started reviewing Harry Potter, Aline has become quite fascinated with the concept of a _pop_ping noise sounding every time a person Apparates or Disapparates. It's becoming quite annoying, to tell you the truth. 

Aline: *Peeks back into room* Authoress, you know the only reason I hang around you is to annoy you. Just admit it. *Smirks in superior Draco Malfoy-ish way* 

*Smiles sweetly* Ah, but dear muse, if it weren't for you, I couldn't possibly have gotten VA up, and then I wouldn't be so popular (*looks shiftily around*), so I really have to wonder if indeed you do hang around to annoy me. 

Aline: *Sneers elegantly* *Pulls head out of room* 

*Sneers back* Finally. *Mutters* Anyway, I know, I know, a short chappie, and not even a very good one either. I _told_ you I positively _stank_ at fight scenes. *Sticks tongue out* 

I'm sorry about not updating in so long, I lost my inspiration and Aline wasn't around to slap it back into me, but I'm finally on my spring break, and apparently some really, er, _interesting_, thoughts have followed me home from school too. O.o Weird. 

So, Piccolo's shown what living around Vegeta does to ya! Creepy, if you ask me! And Goku's been having some deep thoughts! Still more creepiness! And what were the reactions of the Satan Gang to this? Or even Jared? How about Chichi and Bulma? How were _they_ affected by Piccolo's uncharacteristic performance? Do you also want to know how the Kai pair felt about Piccolo's fight? Or the Majin Dabura? Ah, but how is the Majin Double Pui going to fare? Is he going to live or is he going to die? He better not live, the dirty psychotic. How badly is Sunburn Guy going to be hurt at the hands of the vindictive Vegeta? What does vindictive mean anyway? Find out, in the next chapter, of **Vigilante Angel**. 

:~*~: 

Poll Tabs: 

Ugh, romance. I'm sorry, guys. I've totally changed my mind about the plot, and the role that I had for the romance in here, but in the new plot there isn't really anything that the romance I had in mind really can do, so I might as well not write it. Sorry guys, that was a complete waste of votes, but I appreciate the feedback anyway! Lets me know what I can write in the future! Thankies! 

:~*~: 

And now to respond to reviews! (At least some of them, if not all, anyway)

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shadowphoenix2:Oh, don't worry, that insane Majin will definitely meet his end soon enough. I just need a little time. *Grins smugly* And Dabura is meeting his end pretty soon as well. Babikini I can't wait to lay my hands on him either. I want you to give him as gruesome an ending as I am going to give him. Although I don't know what I'm going to do to him yet. *Face faults* 

Yeah I like AAS better too. I've gotten used to TheShadowPanther too quickly to be normal, and now I wanna go back. Buuuut, I'm willing to give SP some time before I change. As if that's going to change my mind. Too many shadows around here, like you said. ^_- Hey! Get your beta to call you Skadu! SP's _my _name! Huh! 

Gohan's going to fight in three chapters! See simba_rulz' response for more info! -_- Actually, I made Videl lose because one of my reviewers, who really hates Videl, asked me to. _And _in the series, Killa was attacked by 18, who is a superhuman Android, so we really don't know how strong he is. So I decided to take liberties with that. And Videl's chapter is what came out of it. 

OK, I know I didn't do Pikkoro's fight too well, so don't be disappointed. Blame my muse, she went off and didn't come back when I needed her. Huh. *Crosses arms* Figures. I'm the only cool person to update that Saturday? *Jaw drops* You think I'm _cool_?! *Squeals!* I'm cool! I'm cool! I'm cool! YES! Thanku Skadu! 

Yeah, I know _all _about the updating thing. _None_ of my favorite authors are even updating on the weekends, _including _**you**_._Whaddaya got to say to dat, eh Skadu? ^_-

A piece of ultra-yummy Juicy Fruit Strappleberry gum! YAY! *Chews happily* 

Happy Saturday Belated! Now, it's happy Monday! LOL! 

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simba_rulz: Amber, not every chapter is going to have Gohan in it. I do need to concentrate on my other characters too, even if this fic _is_ mainly Gohan-centric. Be patient, Gohan will appear in maybe next chapter and definitely in two chapters after next. So be patient, and review every time! Review more than once if you feel I'm getting slow, if that helps any! 'Kay? We agreed? Of course, we're agreed. I am the all-powerful AAS-sama, after all. *Grinz and bows* You are under my mind control, and there is nothing you can do to stop that! Heeheeheeheeheehee! *Bows again* 

Happy belated b-day! You're a proud thirteen-year-old, right? Or are you twelve now? ^__- Is Simba still sick? I DON'T WANT HIM TO DIE!!!!!!! The gods save him! Update Red Lightning whenever you feel like it! 

I love that song!!!!! LOL! 

__

GIVE…ME…GOHAN…

AAS-sama

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Briememory: Oh my gosh! I'm so flattered! Well, I hope this chapter meets up with your standards. I certainly hope the time isn't too long. Oh my gosh! I'm squealing! *Squeals* Ohthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! *Glomps Brie* You know, the first part of your name is the nickname I chose for Gabrielle. Isn't that simply a coincidence? 

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Nooka: LOL I updated! Was this fight satisfactory? I really think that I portrayed Piccolo in a different light than he normally is in. But then again, I suppose that is the point of this fic, one of them anyway, to do that. So I don't know. What's with all the confusion over at **Kakkhan**? I don't get it. **Kakkhan** makes sense to me! 

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SS2 Megami-sama: What's with all the Japanese? I don't even know what you're saying! Please translate! You know, now that I think about it, isn't it tiring to be in SS2 form all the time, Falcon? LOL I'm j/k! 

Oh boy, I definitely empathize with you about the muses. Luckily for me, I only have to deal with one muse at a time, although all my muses do come all together sometimes. Then it's just total chaos. Oh god. But at least they don't try and lock me in boxes! Yet… *Shifty look* 

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BlackFireDragonK: Well, I didn't come up with that name. No way. _I'm _at least a little more inventive than that. although I do suppose that Double Pui _is_ inventive, in a way. Kakkarot is definitely inventive, I'll tell you that. I updated! 

Mayrana: Aw! I didn't do this one as normal, though. I'm thoroughly depressed. *Rolls eyes* Eh well. 

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Marshmellow13Dragon: Who knew? I hated the way Videl was in the series too. }P That's why I changed it. Yecch! No, I will not cover all three spars in one chapter. Gohan is not fighting Veggie-chan just yet, in case you've misread the fighting. *Looks at M13D* Anyway, Gohan's fight is in three chaps. I have some stuff to cover before then, as well as Veggie-chan's fight and Dabbie's fight. Mean old Majin Dabbie, I hate 'im. }P Well, I updated and told, so there you are! *Grinz* 

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Hiaburi: Just OK?!?! *Sigh*

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Gohan's Kat: HEY!!!!!! I LOVED THAT DatS UPDATE! I…NEED…MORE! I still can't believe one of my most favoritest authors is reading my fic!!!! Oh and tell Lexi to get her behind over here and review already! Golly gee whiz! I updated! 

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DBZ Chick1: No updates till April 27th eh? I'll be waiting! I updated! 

:~*~: 

Whoa, lotsa reviews! Gotta email all of ya too! Whew! 

Thanks to **shadowphoenix2**, **simba_rulz**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Gohan's Kat**, **Marshmellow13Dragon**, **Hiaburi**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Briememory**, **Nooka**, **Mayrana**, and **BlackFireDragonK** for their reviews! You guys are the best! This thanks also extends to those who have read but not reviewed! You know who you are! *Glares* 

¡Adios! 

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TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN**

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AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy. 

Valete! REVIEW! 


	23. Chapter the Twenty Second: Doomed

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Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-Second

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen? 

Disclaimer: *Is disgusted at the lack of faith the word "disclaimer" implies* 

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-) 

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: HI! Sorry I took so long in getting this up. Not only was I busy, but I was _busy_. Besides that, my computer had to be taken to the shop and now everything that I had on here is totally lost. Gone. Obliterated. Thanks a lot computer fixer dude!!!!! *Scowls * I just got the Internet back!!! *Steams* 

*Sighs* On the other hand, finally school is laying off on me. I'm so glad. I was immersed in HP for a while, too, but I'm finally coming back to writing for DBZ. Be warned, though, I'm doing this one without my muse. She's gone somewhere, and I have a _slight_ idea where. I'm actually thinking on my own!!!! AHHHH! IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD! SAVE US! 

Anyway. LOL. I have two HP fics being planned out, or in the case of one, written out, and they'll be up after I finish Vigi Ange. YES, THIS FIC IS GOING TO BE FINISHED! NEVER FEAR!!!! *Cheers erupt at announcement* THANK YOU! THANK YOU! *Bows low* But anyhoo, I still have a job on my hands with my _other_ fic, **Kakkhan: Giendonese Saiyan Warrior**, so the HP fics may not be written for awhile after Vigi Ange is finished. Ah well. They _will _be written, as well as the _Digimon_ fic, but they're on hold for the time being. Vigi Ange and **Kakkhan** are my first priority right now. YES! FIRST PRIORITY! 

Still, it's not my fault when my muses decide to desert me for the Caribbean. *Pouts* 

*Grins* Enjoy! 

:~*~: 

__

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond 

"Speech"

(Annoying Author's Comments on the Story in the Story) 

:~*~: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

:~*~: 

Favorite Sentence(s) of the Story So Far: 

__

"Babidi chose me as one of his henchmen! Me! Not my dastardly brother, not my cousin, the Dark Planet grant him peace of mind, or my other dastardly brother! HE—CHOSE—ME!" 

—Majin Double Pui, Match Five, Middle of Chapter the Twenty-First 

:~*~: 

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

__

Piccolo snorted. If he knew the fortune of the Earth well, there was no "if and when" about Majin Buu's revival. Piccolo could only hope, as much as an old Namekian could, that Earth would not be destroyed, as it most likely was going to be. 

The Namekian snorted again at his oddly sentimental thoughts; when had he gotten so soft? No matter, the business with the Majin was done. It was on to the other Majin, and beyond. 

Piccolo stalked stiffly away, as only a Namekian could stalk stiffly, and left the platform. He disappeared into the fighter's lounge and went out the back door of there, much in the same way that Killa had, even as the power levels of a certain Saiyan Prince dropped sharply. 

:~*~: 

Goku simply scratched his head in confusion. Piccolo hadn't fought like that in a long time, why now? Maybe it was the fact that Piccolo hadn't fought in a tournament setting since the Cell Games. Actually, before the Cell Games. Piccolo hadn't actually been in the action in the Cell Games. So was it the roar of the crowd that had caused Piccolo to fight like that? Or was it something else, something deeper, and more diabolical? Whatever it was, that was one creepy opponent out of the way, now to get the other. 

:~*~: 

[1st Tournament Day] 

The Satan gang stared the events that had just come and gone. Yet _another_ strange reality had presented itself, and none of them, not even Gabrielle, would have thought it possible to beat a person that badly and still have the victim be alive. True, that blue person was kind of creepy, even for a psycho, _and_ he had had an aura that put even Erasa off. But no person would or should have survived that kind of a fight (Shows how much they know. *Sniffs haughtily*). 

Gabrielle shook her head and frowned. There was something weird going on. At least four of the people who had already fought had done so in ways that defied all laws of physics, and Gabrielle was sure that still more of this kind of action was in store for today. But why couldn't she sense how strong those people were? She knew they were strong, oh yes. But _how_ strong she couldn't possibly even _guess_. Normally that kind of thing was as open as a book to her, but not this time. Gabrielle found herself wondering, just like any other person, something she wasn't used to nor liked at all. She was used to knowing anything and everything about everybody within a snap of her long fingers. Not knowing was unsettling and worth telling her mentor. 

The psychic sighed. She hated this, but she would have to save it for another day, preferably notrainy. 

Videl wondered about the mysterious group of fighters who had suddenly showed up for this one tournament. She thought she recognized a few of them from somewhere, but where? She knew, instinctively, that it was not from any public thing that she and her father had attended. Nor was the somewhere from any personal contact; she had never seen them face-to-face before. So why was it that almost every one of that group of fighters, especially the wild-haired teenage boy, was familiar to her? 

Videl decided to leave the matter for now. It was enough that they were familiar to here for her to have enough thought-food to keep her up past her regular bedtime and long into the night, in the dark (1). 

Sharpner and Erasa were too busy goggling at the short but proud man strutting through to ponder much on the strangeness of That Other Group, as they were getting to be known. Besides, thinking too much hurt the head. It wasn't good for one's mental health. 

:~*~:

Vegeta smirked. He hadn't been able to shock a reaction out of the first Kakkagaki, but the words, "Hmm. That's very impressive control, Vegeta. I wouldn't have thought that much possible considering you only reached it yesterday. Nice job. You're stronger than Dad. He hasn't even tried to get to SS3 yet, but he could. Oh well. At least you'll be able to beat him for once," still rang in his ears. 

Vegeta's smirk grew wider as the Namek strode by him. He caught the side-glance the Namek tossed him and knew why it originated. Good. The Namek knew. The baka excuse for a Saiyan nor the kyojaku humans wouldn't know, however. The first brat had constructed a ki shield that prevented not only any damage to the immediate area, but also blocked all ki sensors from reading his power. The Saiyan Prince considered this trait both an upside and a downside. The upside: the humans and Kakkarot didn't know. The downside: the humans and Kakkarot didn't know. 

Vegeta snorted amusedly. Not for long would they not know his power. For although Kabeeto, or whatever the HFIL his opponent's name was, was a weakling, and Vegeta fully intended on treating him like one, there was something out there. Something dark, pervading the air with a sense of impending doom. It just begged to be toyed with. And by the honor of Vegeta-sei, "toyed with" was the exact phrase to use right before "crushed like a bug underfoot." And Vegeta intended to do that too. The thought pleased him greatly. 

Vegeta swept into the fighter's lounge, stalked past a pair of goggling idiots, and lunged outside to await impatiently the arrival of his opponent and the start of his fun. 

Meanwhile, a certain demi-Saiyan was making his way to the WMAT Hospital Ward where a certain blue Majin lay oblivious to the world, not knowing what Fate had, or didn't have, in store for him. 

Vegeta registered the disappearance of one ki amongst millions, but dismissed it airily as he sensed the walking sunburn approach. Finally. Took the kyojaku long enough. It was time that Vegeta showed the world just a taste of what he could do, if he felt like it. 

All it took was a grin for Vegeta to let the Z-senshi know what was going on. Two groaned, one stayed indifferent, two jumped up and down excitedly, while the one who had just returned merely smiled. Whether it was at the antics of the kids he was watching or whether it was at the fighter in the ring, it is not known. But one thing that all of the group did, and wisely too, was they all retreated to the left side of the fighter's lounge. They earned odd looks from the Satan Gang and from Kibito's companion, the mysterious Shin, and a smirk from the other Majin, Dabura, but they ignored them. Instead, they settled down to wait for the demise of the Assistant Supreme Kaio. 

Jared looked from one fighter to the next, making sure they were ready. He vaguely remembered the short fire-haired fighter with his knee-knocking glare, but the Sunburn Guy (who he was secretly rooting for but would not be surprised if he lost) was totally out of place here. Not that it mattered. What did matter was the fight. 

"I see that the fighters are ready. It is now time for the sixth match of the World Martial Arts Tournament!" he shouted. 

Jared raised his arm and swept it down with flourish, WMAT announcer style, and cried, "BEGIN!" 

:~*~: 

[Match Six] 

His smirk still in place, Vegeta turned his head and spat on the grass beside the arena platform. Kibito ignored that sign of blatant disrespect and instead focused his ki-sensing abilities upon the Saiyan Prince. What he got was more than slightly surprising. Instead of finding an energy parallel to the ki signature Vegeta was giving out, Kibito got a glimpse of an almost endless well of broiling energy before Vegeta smirked and lowered his ki signature even more. It also felt to Kibito like Vegeta was a little tired, as if he had been doing something that had been energy-draining before he stepped up into the arena. But Kibito had not felt anything in the way of ki usage during the brutal fight, no, beating besides that which Majunior had been using on Double Pui. Although there had been an area of ki oddly blocked off, as if something had been happening that someone—Kibito didn't recognize the ki signal—hadn't wanted him, or anybody else who could sense ki, to know about. Well, too bad. Kibito was going to find out what had happened and why. 

Seeing that his opponent was about to attack, Kibito called out, "Stop. I do not wish to fight you." He got a glare in return, but Kibito, again, ignored it and continued. "I only wish to see your Super Saiyan powers. Once I see them, I will step down and you will go on in the tournament. Just show me your Saiyan powers," Kibito proclaimed, then sat back to watch the action. 

And the action did come, but not the sort Kibito was expecting. For the Assistant Kaioshin had forgotten one very important thing when dealing with the infamous Saiyan Prince. _Never_ order him around.Otherwise, say goodbye to your consciousness. 

Vegeta simply snorted. "No." 

Kibito was taken aback. "Pardon me? What did you just say?" he stuttered, his face growing apoplectic in rage. He was the Assistant Kaioshin! This should not be happening to him! Being defied by a mere mortal was not in the job description! 

Vegeta Death Glared™ at Kibito and repeated, "No." Kibito spluttered, the only reaction gained from Vegeta being a smirk and an elaboration, "I don't follow orders, kyojaku. The only I follow is myself, and I don't think that's you. Instead, I think I'll punch you out of the ring!" 

And before Kibito knew it, he had slammed into the far wall of the tiled arena and was rapidly falling onto another surface, but one that wasn't quite so hard as the one his back had just connected with. Kibito slit open one eye and realized that his face was scrunched up against the tough and wiry stalks of grass. Kibito had indeed been punched out of the arena. 

The Assistant Supreme Kaio shakily stood up and wiped himself off. The power behind that punch was astounding and like none he had ever known before. The walking sunburn lifted his eyes and met the triumphant gaze of his opponent, before Vegeta turned away and stumped off to the fighter's lounge. On the way he passed the other Majin. The pink Majin, who, thankfully, was not quite as insane as his companion, was every bit as evil and much stronger. Oh yes. The Kaioshin was going to have quite the duel on his hands, next. Unless, of course, something was done to either the Majin or the Kaioshin that prevented the match from taking place, but that was too unlikely to happen. 

Kibito frowned deeply, the thousands of wrinkles on his face reproducing thousands more wrinkles as he slowly followed in Vegeta's wake. He confronted the devious smirk of the Majin as he walked by, followed by the briefly worried/annoyed countenance of his master, before the said countenance smoothed out into the godly expression of unemotion it usually contained. Kibito sent a short mental burst of encouragement to his master and closed off their link, hoping that that would cheer him up enough against the Majin. The Fates knew that Kaioshin needed it. 

The two opposing forces, Demon King and Kaio, faced off against each other, one smirking, the other hiding a turmoil of fear, anguish, and, surprisingly, annoyance. The Kaio was annoyed because he couldn't figure out the mystery that was a certain teenaged Saiyan warrior. For the latter had just told him off for going through with the original plan of allowing energy to be stolen and taken to Babidi. It wasn't as if Kaioshin really knew any other plan to go through, but to be _told off_ by a mere mortal for his ignorance? Everything was going wrong this day, and he knew it was going to get much worse. _Much _worse. 

Kaioshin took a deep breath, then replied in the affirmative to Jared's traditional question of "Fighters ready?" Dabura merely smirked, which Jared took as a "yes." Shuddering, Jared swept up his arm and yelled, "BEGIN!" 

:~*~: 

[Match Seven] 

It was unfair from the start. Both the Kaioshin and the pink Majin knew who was the stronger and who was the weaker, and just how the match was going to play out. Still, the Kaioshin struggled valiantly, rather like a game of cat and mouse, with Shin being the terrified mouse and Dabura being the playful Cheshire Cat. The _evil _playful Cheshire Cat. It was a dance of the cruelest sort, and it was just like the Fates to do this.

Dabura suddenly threw a punch at the Supreme Kaio, which he dodged with surprising nimbleness. Shin sent back a mental burst, causing Dabura to stagger back for only a moment before he came roaring back. But the moment had been enough for Shin to recover from the dodge himself, and the deadly dance continued. Dabura attacked or dodged, and Shin dodged and retaliated, but it was always Dabura on the offensive and Shin on the defensive. 

After a bit of this, Dabura seemed to be getting tired of the game. He suddenly dashed forward at Shin, totally catching him off guard. The audience watched with bated breath, as did the fighters in the lounge. Shin watched with wide eyes as the three-hundred-pound pink Majin rushed toward him, seeming like a freight train coming head-on in an attempt to run over the obstacle in its way and go on. Time, as always, slowed down until Dabura was in slow motion and yet coming on at speeds impossible for untrained human eyes to see. It was one of the most paradoxical and yet sensible things in the multiple universes, all in one. 

Shin watched his opponent coming and thought, _I'm doomed._

:~*~: 

(1) The part of the line stated as "into the night, in the dark," is adapted from the line "In the night. In the dark," said by Mrs. Dudley in "The Haunting", a great TV horror movie. Try and see it if you can. It's really creepy. *Grinz* 

:~*~: 

Translations: 

Baka: Idiot, fool

Kyojaku: Weakling

Kaioshin: Supreme Kaio

Kawaii: Cute

Chibi: Dwarf, small person

:~*~: 

A/n: O.O Poor, poor Shin. God, the things I do to my characters… 

Aand, the things I do for my readers. Thanks to **Briememory** for letting me know that this tournament is getting boring. I'm trying to speed it up, as is evident by putting both the sixth and part of the seventh match in one chapter. I will not do this every time, as there is very important plot stuff coming up, but the tournament really _is _slowing down the plot, not to mention lengthening the chapter numbers. This is, as I've said before, the longest fic I've ever written, and not even **Kakkhan** is _close_ to this number yet. *Sighs* 

On to the reviews! 

:~*~: 

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Tipsy Azn Boi: Wow! Four hours! You're dedicated. Thanks for reading! I hope you get those glasses soon! I updated! 

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B: Sorry **B**! Thanx anyway for the support! 

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DemonDancing: Finally! Where were you?!?! Huh?!?! I reviewed DAtS! Sorry for not earlier! There is no romance but plenty of friendships for Go-chan! Don't worry about that! No-o-o! You think my Videl is well-written? *Gawks* Review again!! Don't make me email you! *Glares* 

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Choice B: HI! Sorry about your comp! I had the same problem, only without a virus. It got wrecked, as in train-wrecked. LOL. You think my fic's too good to sidetrack? KEWL!!! In the original plot, I was going to do that, but the plot's changed now, so bye-bye to romance. Hee. 

You knew I was going to change Piccolo-chan back to before? And that I'm prolly going to mess with V-chan too? Hmm... you know me well. *Vamp grin* 

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SS: FALCON!!! HI! OK, I'm glad I'm not writing romance now. Hehe. LOL! I'm saved! Hey, a new muse! KEWL! I can borrow him? Even cooler! *Smiles dazzlingly* Thanx Falcon! 

A DBZ/Pokemon x-ova huh? Hmm... OK! When/where is it? Huh huh? What's it about anyway? WHEN AM I GOING TO BE ABLE TO READ THE 'PARTNERS' SERIES?!?! -_-

I updated again! So you should be on a sugar high now! LOL! 

BYE! Yo, Kyoku! C'mere! *Chases after muse* BYE!! 

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BlackFireDragonK: Now it's only two chaps! *Grinz* GO PICCOLO IZ RIGHT! 

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Nooka: Thanx! Well, ok. About Kakkhan. Kakkhan _is_ different. But since he already went thru what he went through, that won't change. And the present _will_ be altered. Just not in the way that you think. *Smirks* I updated! Go find those HP plots! 

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Mayrana: No cliffies lately. Hafta fix that. *Grinz* Yes, some of Piccolo's evilness never went away, it just become dormant. It's dormant now again, but you never know...

AAHH!! Can't resist the kawaii demi-Saiyan duo! I updated! *Hugs chibis and Mayrana* 

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Hiaburi: Yay! A good chapter rating! YES! All that BS is right. Don't need to say it. I updated!

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Gohan's Kat: I reviewed! Yeah, make sure you do that to Lexi! Jeez! I got a review from her for last chap, but I'm not sure 'bout this one...

Yes, I was creeped out myself by the insane way the blue Majin was acting. That's why it was so fun to write! Hee! I updated! 

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Briememory: The tournament's getting boring?!?! NOOOOOOOOOO! Gotta update faster! Thanks again for letting me know! 

*Blushes* Thanks for the compliment! I agree, there are some fics that _could_ be interesting, but the grammar and spelling SUX to high heaven and totally takes away from the story. Yick! [P ß HEY! I like that face! :D Thanx for the review! 

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DBZ Chick1: HI! I havta see your fics then!!! See ya on April 27th or sometime thereafter! I updated! 

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Simba_rulz: Creepy. Remind me never to get a cat like Simba. *Laughs nervously* Yeah. Go you for being sneaky! I did that too for harrypotter.warnerbros.com, but it was definitely a relief when I was finally 13. Heh. I updated! 

What does Daisuke mean? ?_? ANSWER ME!!! 

AAS-sama *Bows* 

:~*~: 

Poll Tabs: 

Ugh, romance. I'm sorry, guys. I've totally changed my mind about the plot, and the role that I had for the romance in here, but in the new plot there isn't really anything that the romance I had in mind really can do, so I might as well not write it. Sorry guys, that was a complete waste of votes, but I appreciate the feedback anyway! Lets me know what I can write in the future! Thankies! 

On a side note, I got another vote for **B**! *Grinz* 

:~*~: 

Thanks to **gaul1** (14), **gaul1** (22), **Tipsy Azn Boi**, **DemonDancing**, **Gohan's Kat**, **DBZ Chick1**, **simba_rulz**, **Nooka**, **Mayrana**, **Mayleesa**, **Briememory**, **Hiaburi** **BlackFireDragonK**, **SS**, **Choice B**, and **B **for their excellent reviews! 

Well, I gotta go fish for Aline. Seems she's accidentally been thrown overboard one of the cruisers by one of the passengers and she's flailing around amongst the coral. I'll wager this is one of the worst vacations this DBZ muse has had and hopefully she won't be taking one again for quite some time. I'll see you again, next time on **Vigilante Angel**. Don't forget to review! 

Bye! 

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TheShadowPanther from **AASN**

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AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy. 


	24. Chapter the Twenty Third: Consummated

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-Third

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen?

Disclaimer: /Puts chin on hand and looks despondently at reader/ Do I really have to say it?

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-)

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

A/n: OY MI DIOS!!!!

Aline: /Still wringing hair out from being in the Caribbean OceanCrankily/ What?!?!

I'M SO CLOSE TO 200! WOO! I CAN'T WAIT, I CAN'T WAIT, I CAN'T WAIT FOR MY 200TH REVIEWER! HEE!

Aline: /Distastefully/ Oh, God, she's sugar high.

SURE I AM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LIVE TO BE SUGAR HIGH! HEEHEEHEE!

Aline: /Distastefully again/ Sure. /Looks around/ Uh, Panthie, /Gets THE GLARE from SPIgnores/ I think that you're being pursued. /Points/

/Looks around/ O.O /Sees HP muses and Allati advancing upon her/ Uh-oh... /Flees/

Aline: /Smiles wickedly/ Aren't illusions _fun_?!

Reviewers: O.O Riiiiiiiiiiiiight... HELP! /Scream futilely for help while Aline laughs madly, enjoying the psychological torture the reviewers are going through/

SP: /ReturnsSees what's going on/ AAAAAAAAAAAALINE!!!!

Aline: O.O /Disapparates/

SP/Reviewers: /Smile satisfiedIn unison/ That's one pesky muse down, about fourteen more to go! Onward! /SP charges/

SP: /Looks back over shoulder/ And a story too! :D

:#:#:#:

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Annoying Author's Comments on the Story in the Story)

:#:#:#: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

:#:#:#:

Favorite Sentence(s) of the Story So Far:

"...there was something out there. Something dark, pervading the air with a sense of impending doom. It just begged to be toyed with. And by the honor of Vegeta-sei, 'toyed with' was the exact phrase to use right before 'crushed like a bug underfoot.'"

—Vegeta's thoughts before Match Sixth in Near the Beginning/Early Middle Part of Chapter the Twenty-second

:#:#:#:

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

Time, as always, slowed down until Dabura was in slow motion and yet coming on at speeds impossible for untrained human eyes to see. It was one of the most paradoxical and yet sensible things in the multiple universes, all in one.

Shin watched his opponent coming and thought, I'm doomed.

:#:#:#:

[1st Tournament Day]

[Match Seven, Continued]

What happened next was as if Shin had spoken a spell. Dabura suddenly halted and started clawing at his head, as if trying to get something out of there. Shin was shocked for a moment, before stumbling out of the way of the rampaging Majin.

Gohan, who had come in during Vegeta's fight (=P to **simbarulz**), snorted. Goku looked over at Gohan, both of them sharing the same sentiment, _This is baloney_. Krillin looked between the father and the eldest son, then looked at the Demon King in the arena acting like a drunkard. Krillin hooded his eyes in annoyance. It seemed that Master Roshi with his Mad Cow Act (1) had had a bigger influence on people than he'd thought.

Goten and Trunks chose this moment to bound up to Gohan. "Hi Gohan! Do ya wanna play with us? We need a person to help us with our pranks."

Gohan raised an eyebrow. Before this day, Gohan, Goten, and Trunks had gathered together and agreed to act as if Gohan had never, ever played a prank with them. This was not true, Gohan was as guilty as the rest of them, but as Gohan was dead and supposedly bound by the same rules as was Goku, there was not a good explanation for Gohan playing pranks with Goten and Trunks (riiiiiiiiiiiight…). Luckily, even Goten was good at acting, being around Trunks and Gohan long enough to pick up on the fact that looking innocent was a _good_ thing. And so the charade went, with Gohan pretending to refuse to participate and the evil duo pretending to be disappointed. The Z-senshi sighed with relief, oblivious to the doom that was going to befall them, twice (Once with Buu, twice with the Not-so-Golden Trio, thrice with… HEY! It's only two times!!).

Shin watched confusedly as Dabura stumbled this way and that. He truly did not know what was going on, but he hoped what was happening wasn't going to harm Earth. It probably was, though, and Shin had to do something to prevent any damage—fast. So he did the only thing he could think of: attack. A costly mistake that sent him straight out the ring and into the walls just outside of it, thanks to a seemingly lucky punch from a drunken-acting Dabura.

The fight was not over until the fat lady sang, however. There weren't any warm-up trills or coughs to get a throat clear to be heard, so the fight was supposed to be continued as it did.

Shin clung to the wall with all of his strength. Mind you, this really was not much, as the Supreme Kaio was only four/fifths stronger than the strongest human. Meaning that Shin could send a human flying with a single punch, but he certainly couldn't make the Demon King bow down to him that way. No, the Supreme Kaio's forte was in the strengths of the mind.

Speaking of the strengths of the mind, Shin had momentarily forgotten how to levitate himself. It was just him, the walls, the grass, and the goal of not falling onto the grass. Shin forgot why he shouldn't drop onto the grass (Jeez, what an absent-minded Kaio!), just that he had to get back over to the arena. He was heedless of the shouting of the announcer or of the cheers of the crowd as he clung. He was also heedless of the snickers of Dabura as he stood and watched Shin in this embarrassing position.

Shin heaved and lunged for the arena, his subconscious suddenly clicking in with a kick. It kept his feet off the ground while Shin scrabbled at the tiled arena, producing an image so awkward that it swept Dabura off his feet in his laughter. He was laughing so hard he was rolling around on the tiles, tears streaming down his face anime-style. Shin finally hauled himself onto the arena, feet and all, and looked at the guffawing Dabura.

Something snapped within Shin at that moment. Seeing red, the pint-sized Kaio charged the Demon King, fists upraised and a horrific yell coming from his mouth. Dabura stopped laughing at the sight of Shin rushing him like a small baby rhinoceros, red in his black gaze. The Demon King hurriedly scrambled up and tried to get out of the angry Kaioshin's way, but a mental lightning bolt struck him and pinned him to the ground. Shin came on, much like Dabura had done earlier, but instead of pretending to go crazy at the last moment, Shin pounced on Dabura and started punching him with every bit of strength he had left. Granted, those punches really weren't much, but added to the mental pain and disorientation he'd just been dealt, Dabura felt every one of those punches, for once.

Dabura, serious now with more than a few marks spotting his face, grabbed one of Shin's wrists. He was forced off by another violent mental attack. He tried again, but the pain the second time was still too much. A few punches later, he tried a third time and rode out the mental punch. If not the one afterwards.

Shin continued to beat Dabura, until twenty-seven punches and nine mental blots later, the force behind both started to weaken. Dabura was finally able to throw the Kaioshin away from him, managing to throw him towards the grass once more. Shin clutched weakly at the tiles, but a push from Dabura dislodged his hold and he was sent sliding again. With this push, Shin was now right on the edge. Just one more push and Shin would be history. Dabura got shakily up on his hands and his knees, not able to get up fully because of the neurological damage Shin specialized in. Every few minutes, Dabura shuddered, his vision obviously going blurry, as his brain tried to deal with Shin's giant electrical shocks delivered directly to the brain. It was a miracle Dabura was still moving after all of this. Tells you how strong Dabura is mentally, eh? (;)

Finally, Dabura was in range (Star Wars!). Shin prepared himself for a final mental burst, set to go off when Dabura touched him, like earlier. It was the only thing that Shin could think of doing, even though Dabura would likely be expecting that. Although from the way Dabura was shuddering—

Shin amended his thought to "the way Dabura had _just_ shuddered," as the Demon King seized again. From the way Dabura had just shuddered, it was also likely that his judgement was clouded by pain. If that were true, Dabura would likely just try to push Shin without thinking about the possibility of it being a trap. Like a spider desperate for flies, so Shin laid his trap and waited.

However, as the saying goes, the best-laid plans of mice and men, and high-reigning gods, often go astray. Well, Shin's didn't exactly go wrong. They were foiled before they even got to be sprung. For Dabura, the pink Majin, the mighty Demon King, fell.

Yea, how the mighty hath fallen.

Shin couldn't believe his eyes. He couldn't believe that Dabura's hand, which had been reaching for him with all its claws, had suddenly fallen away. He couldn't believe that Dabura's other elbow had buckled, sending the evil Majin crashing to the tiles. The Supreme Kaio, survivor of Majin Buu's first uprising, couldn't believe that as Dabura fell, his head thudded against the arena floor. The slight pain, normally unfelt and unheeded, was multiplied by the thousands, by the pain already felt, and this pain caused Dabura to undergo temporary neurological failure (temporary, but enough that when Dabura wakes, he would be more insane than Double Pui. O.o). Shin could not believe this, yet these were exactly the events that took place.

Why was it so surprising? The underdog came back and defeated the top dog. So what? We've all seen that before. Sheesh!

Jared was silent for a long second. Then he rushed up onto the playing field and over to the pink Majin. He hesitated before touching the Majin, but he did touch the monster, and no one seemed to notice his hesitation. Jared did resolve to wash his hands ASAP.

Quickly letting go of Dabura's wrist, Jared brought his microphone up to his mouth and stood up at the same time.

"Dabura is knocked out cold! No. 14, Shin, is the winner!" he cried to the waiting audience. The body of persons responded with a roar, even as Shin sagged in relief. Blackness cascaded onto him and mercifully let him sleep.

:#:#:#:

After the unconscious forms of Shin and the pink Majin were hauled in stretchers off of the field, Pintar strutted out. Gohan was nowhere to be seen, but if one knew how to sense ki, one would have registered the disappearance of one very evil, although muted, ki. With the disappearance of that ki, one would have breathed easier, much easier, knowing that evil had once again been defeated. Wait, what am I talking about?! We can sense ki! (/Readers face-fault/)

Seconds ticked, and the audience, already restless, grew more so. Pintar was pacing back and forth, seeming like a rather fat seven-foot upright lion in a cage, one without bars. Jared himself grew worried, many worst-case scenarios running through his head with each passing second. He was just about to issue a warning, his mike raised, when a hand rested on his shoulder.

He turned, saw Gohan. "Sorry about that. Had some minor business to take care of," he apologized. He took his hand off Jared's shoulder and stuck it in his gi pants pocket.

Jared nodded and noted with relief that Gohan bore no sword upon his back. He allowed Gohan to go by, bringing up his microphone again and saying, "Well, folks, it appears that something came up and delayed Gohan for a while. But he's here and ready to go, so let's get started with match number eight between fighters 15 and 16, Gohan vs. Pintar!"

Another roar from the crowd, under which Jared asked the fighters, "Ready?"

:#:#:#:

[Match Eight]

Pintar puffed his chest out and said, "Of course! I've been ready for _five minutes!_"

Gohan dodged the insult and pointed glare Pintar sent his way and nodded at Jared. "I'm ready if this goofball over here is," he said, jerking a thumb at Pintar. Pintar spluttered in rage, at which Gohan just looked at him in a mild-mannered way, obviously meant to deceive Pintar into thinking Gohan was weak (As if. /Snorts/). It appeared to work as well, for right after Jared swept his arm down and cried, "BEGIN," Pintar immediately started taunting him again.

"So you think you can stand up against the mighty Pintar? Look at you! You're nothing but a skinny little beanpole, took weak to be able to last!" Pintar laughed at this, eliciting boos from the tons of girls who were drooling over Gohan's frame (HEY! BACK OFF!! HE'S OURS!!).

Gohan just raised his eyebrows at Pintar in response, a reaction that brought dozens of sighs from the girls, teenage and younger, in the audience (Grr…! /Makes fist/ Pesky audience girls!!). Jared wasn't too impressed with Pintar's antics either. He had used the same things on the opponent he'd had two tournaments ago who was the same way. Pintar needed new material.

Pintar continued laughing through the boos of the girls. "I don't know how you made it through the prelims, kid," the Persian said, finally calming down, "but can you match this?"

He launched into a series of acrobatics that were impressive for a human, and even more so for Pintar with all his bulk. Gohan merely watched, his nonchalant attitude masking the sneer he wore inwardly. When Pintar came whizzing by again, Gohan stuck out a leg and tripped him, sending Pintar flat onto his face with a sickening _thud._ Gohan stuck his leg back down again, keeping his face mild as though nothing had happened. Which, it hadn't, in Gohan's mind at least.

"Oh! Pintar is sent flying to the ground! I can't exactly tell what happened there, but it's safe to assume that Pintar mis-stepped and tripped over his own feet! Seeing as Pintar isn't moving, I'm going to start the count. One!" Jared shouted for the entire world to hear (Heh, seeing as this _is_ the WMAT, it _is_ the entire world. Heh!). However, he only got to the count of three before Pintar stirred.

"And Pintar gets up from the ground at three! Is he going to be able to keep himself together after his mistake? Let's find out!" came the call from Jared.

The big Arabian was breathing heavily now, both from getting the breath knocked out of him and from outrage, outrage that he had been tripped by a mere snotling as was his opponent (Snotling?!?!). His dark face was red from anger and exertion, and he was clenching his fist in rage.

Gohan remained impassive.

Pintar ground his teeth. How dare this boy defy him? He was supposed to be awe-struck and quivering in fear! Pintar was supposed to be in control of this fight, not that gangly boy with that superior look on his face! Just who did he think he was, anyway, the big hotshot?! (Yeah, basically.)

"No more Mr. Nice Guy! You've gotten off easy so far, kid, but now you fall!" he roared, setting his body into the fastest sprint it could go. No one had seen speeds like the ones Pintar was putting on, he was sure of it. So sure that a smug look crossed his face as he surged toward Gohan. He planned to wipe that not-very-impressed look off of Gohan's face and to pound him into the ground with the boy screaming for mercy.

Just imagine Pintar's surprise when he slammed into Gohan and it felt like a brick wall jamming into his stomach all the way to his spine. He looked down dazedly at the boy's face, which was surprisingly closer to his own face than his fist. Pintar's opponent still had on a polite façade, marred for only a second by a brilliant Grin™, before Pintar's eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted back onto the tiles.

"Pintar is knocked out in this spectacular first round defeat! Pintar was showing off and taunting Gohan, but Gohan came through with a single finger into Pintar's stomach! What a fantastic display of strength! Let's give it up for Gohan, the winner of the eighth and last match of round one of the World Martial Arts Tournament!"

The audience gave it up all right. Cheers and wolf-whistles resounded in the air, along with phone numbers and names. Things were thrown out onto the arena: roses, teddy bears (What is this, an ice skating competition?), and such like. Gohan merely grinned at the audience and continued on his merry way to the lounge.

He was greeted with cheers, laughs, and pats on the back. Stares were also leveled at his back, but Gohan paid no mind to the Satan Gang. Especially the bleached-haired beauty staring at him with narrowed black eyes.

Gabrielle was shocked for the umpteenth time that day. She had seriously thought that Gohan was going to lose. She had approved of the way he had handled Pintar, but the single-finger-in-the-gut thing threw her for dozens of loops. Who was this guy? Who were all the other guys? Did they have a special purpose for being at the WMAT? If so, was it for good or evil? What precisely was the purpose, if they had one?

She kept her gaze on Gohan as he picked up his sword and strapped it to his back. She knew the sword was an ancient one, and that it was heavy to wield. She knew this because she had inspected it personally when Gohan had put it down, before the fight. Before the fight seemed like long ago, but when Gabrielle had run her hands over the sword, she had felt nothing. No spark of knowledge, no greeting from the sword. Gabrielle didn't know what was happening. Was she losing her powers? She had heard of that sort of thing happening. Was she one of the unlucky ones? She knew she needed to get to Berkley fast, before she lost her mind with all these questions.

Who _were_ these people?!

:#:#:#:

(1) Referring to an incident in Dragonball with Muten Roshi

:#:#:#:

Translations:

Kaio: God

Kaioshin: Supreme Kaio

:#:#:#:

A/n: SORRY, SORRY, SORRY, SORRY, SO SORRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so very sorry that this is late, but Aline disappeared again and Allati was just so insistent and—

Aline: Whomever are you talking about, authoress?!

Well, duh, the muse for **Kakkhan**, ya know!

Aline: Oh, her. Remind me to thank her sometime.

/Puts tongue in cheek and hoods lids in annoyance/

Aline: …

GO AWAY ALINE!!!

Aline: Make me.

Heh heh heh heh…

Aline: /Raises eyebrow/ O.O

**__**

COSMO LASER BEAM!!!!!!!!!

Aline: /Disapparates/

CLB: /Disapparates as well/

/Looks smug/ I finally programmed my CLB to follow Aline wherever she goes until it hits her. Took me all my years at to do that. LOL.

OK, dudes and dudettes, down to business. If you're wondering why Dabura got knocked out (underwent temporary neurological failure actually), think of the Majin having a very nasty headache, and multiply that by five into a very nasty, nasty, nasty migraine, for which there is no aspirin. Heh. Think of that, and you will see now why Dabura did what was mentioned in the parentheses, getting himself knocked out by a simple little thud on the arena tiles. Quite simple, really.

As for the sighing girls… WHO WANTS TO HELP ME BEAT THEM UP?!?!

:#:#:#:

On to the reviews!

Simbarulz (anon): /Squeals/ I so love my fanlisting!!! I'm including a mention of the link to that fanlisting in every chapter of every story I have for always!! It must take a lot of time to upkeep (if not now, def in the future), what with the other fanlistings you have. Thanks for opening it. I appreciate the effort, even though it's only you and me so far LOL! /Hugs/ I especially love the photo with "The Panther's Lair" on it. SO KEWL!!

Plz put up at Maybe some authors are out there!! I need to be loved!!

On a side note, or rather the main one LOL, the answer to your review. Go you for being sneaky, sliding by Fido like that! Yeah, the surprise thing definitely is a hit. It's in my bio (AND ALL OF YOU SHOULD CHECK IT OUT!!), as well as a mention of it in this chapter as you asked. No link, 'cuz the QuickEdit thing just cuts it out. Bleagh. I REALLY want it to stay up! I need to be LOVED!!! THANX!!! /Glomps Amber for the TENTH time/ YAY!!

TTYL to you, Simba, AND Bear!!

AAS-sama /Bows/

Cesna Rose: Sure you can write the idea! You've already started, so you can't really stop now, now can ya? Thanx for reading!

Skadu: Yeah, it is getting long. Heh. Took one of my reviewers 4 HOURS to read. O.O

No! Pikkoro didn't eat Gohan! He's back now, ya know!! Stop attacking Pikkoro! Sheesh!

KibKib! Haha! Don't forget Majin Buk for Buu. Tho maybe we can call him Bukbik or something like that. LOL.

You still like my style, eh? Go to **Kakkhan** and see what it's like. It's definitely a different style, especially in later chaps (as in chps 12 onward "especially")

I think you'll need an email-kick-in-the-rear this time, what w/ writing your new stories (and NOT writing your old) and all.

Nice summary of the events of Serendipity in Sabireru, btw. I did spell that right, right? Right?!?! /Looks panicky/

UPDATE KOKUHAKU NOW!!!

KibKib!

Tipsy Azn Boi: You can wait now, eh? Hehehe!! The final battle's coming up pretty soon. Don't know how long it'll take. Two chaps, maybe? /Iz confused/

SS2 Megami-sama: FALCON!!!! Ya know, Kyo-chan's inspired me already. He convinced me to pick up a fic idea I already had and to change it around, so after Kakkhan I is finished and I get a breather, **Graceful Charity** will be up. Now, Kyoku, don't tell anyone what the plans for GC are, 'kay?

Kyoku: OK. /Chibi grins and hugs Panther/

SP: :D Gotta love the dragon boy. Hee.

Kyoku: :D

SP: OK, so how'd the State Chorus competition go? Sunny Florida, right? I went to Miami (but didn't step out of the airport ha!) and the pilot said it was 90 degrees out. Do you know how hot that is? THAT IS FRIGGIN' HOT!!!! GEE!!! Good thing the Miami Internat. Had A/C!! Hehehe!

I want to see 'Partners' already!!!

Kyo-chan: /Keeps grinning/

Briememory: I updated, finally! Hehehe!

DBZ Chick1: I updated! Been reading, too! Great job on the updates! I'll continue reading after I finish posting this up!

Mayrana: I updated, but managed to resist the Not-So-Golden Demi-Saiyan Trio for a few months!! Hahah! Altho just Gohan would do. /Snickers/ Well, now you know what happened to Shin! Muahah! Who'da ever thought that Shin would beat Dabura? Not me, that's for sure! See what happens when fic chapters run away from you? Sheesh...

Simbarulz (sig): Gohan's in, FINALLY! Gods above!! Your persistent nagging has finally paid off! /Grumbles/ Sheesh...

Daisuki Gohan-chan too! :0)

O.O Note to self: Stay away from Simba. Do not call him the cursed c-word. That way, he can't kill me all the way from Kansas! O.o

Do I need to be careful of Bear too? O.o

Poor Shin?! Poor me!! I'm being stalked by an angry human in a neko's body and have only my dog to protect me (which she'll do all costs! Beware Simba the Human!!)

So how'd Bear appear on the scene? Did you just him/her? What kind of dog? Any quirks (scared of Simba /Shivers/) TELL ME!!

Daisuki Gohan-chan!

AAS-sama /Bows/

PS LOVE THE FANLISTING!!

:#:#:#:

Poll Tabs:

Ugh, romance. I'm sorry, guys. I've totally changed my mind about the plot, and the role that I had for the romance in here, but in the new plot there isn't really anything that the romance I had in mind really can do, so I might as well not write it. Sorry guys, that was a complete waste of votes, but I appreciate the feedback anyway! Lets me know what I can write in the future! Thankies!

:#:#:#:

Thanks to **simbarulz** (both times), **Cesna Rose**, **Skadu**, **Tipsy Azn Boi**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Briememory**, **DBZ Chick1**, and **Mayrana **for their excellent reviews!

It's finally the end of the first round! What's going to happen next? Is Gabrielle ever going to get the answers to her dozens of questions? Is the Satan Gang ever going to stop staring? Is this tournament ever going to get interesting? I think so, folks! Let's find out how interesting, next time, on **Vigilante Angel**!

And that's a wrap, folks! Thanks for your time! VISIT/SIGN UP AT MY FANLISTING!! Link under homepage! THANX!!

Sorry again!

TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

[Updated 07/14/04]


	25. Chapter the Twenty Fourth: Safeguards

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-fourth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen?

Disclaimer: I do not have a claim to DBZ, for it was created before I was born, and one cannot own a show that was created before one was born. So thank you for your patience, and no plotting to change your name to "Toriyama." It's been done before, and with no success. Drat.

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-)

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

CHAPTER DEDICATION: To **New Dye**, for being my 200th reviewer. CONGRATS!!!! /Confetti is thrown everywhere and slime gets dumped onto **New Dye** like Slime Time Live™, only on **Nickelodeon**./ As a reward, you get...!

Announcer's voice: **New Dye** gets a life-sized plushy of **Vigilante Angel**'s Guardian Angel Gohan™, complete with the guardian pass, "Property of the Gods" shirt, and the sword Arikeru strapped to his back. This plushy is a once-in-a-chapter deal, and will only be rewarded to those reviewers who hit milestones. Congratulations to **New Dye**, and for those reviewers who want one, get reviewing for the 300's!!!

Thank you, Announcer. Well, **New Dye**, how do ya like ya reward for being the 200th reviewer for **Vigilante Angel**? :D

(To get a chapter dedicated to you, do something extraordinary. You'll be rewarded.)

A/n: Oh yeah, oh yeah, we got 200, we got 200, it's our birthday, it's our birthday, uh-huh!

Aline: /Simply looks at authoress dancing around chanting "we got 200."/ ...

WE GOT 200!!!!

Aline: Yes, I know. You've only been saying that for 2 million times, Panthie.

/Stops and Looks™ at Aline/ Only 2 million?!?! Gotta get working!! /Starts again/

Aline: /Rolls eyes/ /Starts the new **VA** chapter and leaves, all w/o SP seeing/

WE GOT 200!!! /Whoops/

:#:#:#:

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Annoying Author's Comments on the Story in the Story)

:#:#:#: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

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Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

…For Dabura, the pink Majin, the mighty Demon King, fell.

Yea, how the mighty hath fallen.

—During Match Seven, Near the Beginning of Chapter the Twenty-third

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Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

She kept her gaze on Gohan as he picked up his sword and strapped it to his back. she knew the sword was an ancient one, and that it was heavy to wield. She knew this because she had inspected it when Gohan had put it down, before the fight. Before the fight seemed like long ago, but when Gabrielle had run her hands over the sword, she had felt nothing. No spark of knowledge, no greeting from the sword. Gabrielle didn't know what was happening. Was she losing her powers? She had heard of that sort of thing happening. Was she one of the unlucky ones? She knew she needed to get to Berkley fast, before she lost her mind with all these questions.

Who were these people?!

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[1st Tournament Day]

The Z-senshi were collected around in the fighter's lounge with Chichi, Bulma, Piccolo (who had returned after Gohan's fight), Marron, and Yamcha, who had turned out fashionably late (as usual) just in time to witness Vegeta's triumph. They were discussing how easy or how hard their individual fighters were when a new voice butted in.

"Gohan, could I speak to you for a moment?"

They turned to see the mysterious Shin and the walking sunburn, Kibito, standing outside of their loose circle. Piccolo silently studied those who were his superiors, and deduced that there was probably a good reason that Gohan had made plans behind Shin's back. He had the authoritative air and the power of an extremely old and experienced Kaio, but Piccolo didn't feel that Shin really had had any experience in terms of dealing with evil ki-wielding tyrants like Cell and Frieza, especially long-term. Piccolo really wasn't all that surprised that Shin was the one that had cooked up that hare-brained scheme from before. He was surprised that Kibito had let Shin go through with it. With that countenance, didn't he have any sense?

With a glare at the mortals, Shin added icily, "In private?"

Gohan frowned. "If it's related to Majin Buu, Shin, then it's business that all of us can hear," he said.

The Z-senshi all looked strangely at Gohan, except for Piccolo. They then looked at Shin, who was grinding his teeth audibly.

"Very well. I don't think that you should have killed Dabura. He would have led us to Babidi in time, but you had to go and kill him. You have wrecked our plans and doomed the Earth to inevitable doom because of your actions! What do you have to say for yourself, Son Gohan?!" Shin screeched (uh-oh, Chichi alert. /Sigh/)

Gohan folded his arms over his chest. "In case you don't remember, Shin, I told you your plan sucked. I even yelled at you for attempting to follow through with it earlier. I told you that I had it covered. I do. You don't know what it's like fighting monsters like Buu head on. I do. No, don't protest. I know you were there," silencing Shin and ignoring Kibito's purple face, "but you didn't actually fight Buu, now did you? I have fought monsters like Buu, so I know, okay? Now trust me when I say I have it covered. If I don't, then Piccolo does, okay?"

Piccolo got his fifteen seconds of fame in the spotlight as the Z-senshi turned to him. He steadily ignored their questioning stares and grunted agreement with Gohan's statement.

Shin was absolutely shell-shocked. Never had he gotten such a reality check. True, this was the third one from the same person, Son Gohan, but this one was really an eye-opener. Just what had Gohan gone through in his life to tell shin what he had just said with such confidence? Shin was sure he didn't really want to know or find out.

Kibito, on the other hand, was glaring daggers through the insolent boy with a loose tongue and the cocky attitude to match. He was just about to give the mortal a piece of his mind when Shin held him back.

No. Let Gohan go. He's right. I didn't actually face Buu. I do not know what monsters Gohan has fought in his lifetime, but I am sure that they were more real than anything I ever faced as the Supreme Kaio. He deserves our respect. All of these mortals do, if they are in the same situation. Shin said through his telepathic link with Kibito.

Kibito turned in surprise to his master. Shin raised a hand to still his complaints and returned his attention to Gohan.

"All right, Gohan, what, then, are we going to do now that Dabura is dead and we have no way of finding Babidi?" Shin asked, trying (and not successfully) to keep a hysterical note out of his voice.

Gohan, now that the action was over, had a bored look on his face and replied in the same way. "Relax, Supreme Kaio," disregarding the gasps of the Z-senshi, "I know where his ship is. Babidi isn't in, though. We still going to go to the ship without him?" he asked, still with the bored look.

"Of course! It may even be easier to get to Majin Buu without that wizard around. We don't know until we try. Now let's go!" Shin exclaimed.

Gohan put his hands up in a placating gesture. "OK, OK! Easy. Jeez, you're like my brother when he's super-excited about something. Fine. But we have to use a little discretion. Wouldn't want to be screamed at." He looked around while the members of the Z-senshi, except for Goku and Piccolo, stared at him. Why was the Z-senshi staring at him? Well, Gohan wasn't supposed to know what Goten was like, now was he? Their point exactly.

Gohan gave up and simply held out his hand. "Ahh… no other way to do it. if you want to save the Earth from yet another threat, then hang onto either me or Dad. The rest of you can just wait in ignorance. Heh."

Everybody except Eighteen, Marron, Yamcha, Bulma, and Chichi grabbed onto Gohan or Goku, whomever was closest. Gohan raised an eyebrow at Goten and Trunks clinging onto him, but didn't have the heart to tell them to go away. They were, after all, going on an adventure. Besides, those Puppy Dog Eyes™ would be impossible to resist at this time of day. Gohan gave in just thinking about it.

Chichi did, however, make an attempt to take Goten home. She was properly rebuffed with those self-same Puppy Dog Eyes™ that Gohan had dreaded seeing, and retreated with dignity.

Gohan looked around. "Everybody on? Good, let's go!"

With a flash of cloth and faces looking at the people being left behind, the fighting Z-senshi and the Kaio duo were gone.

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After filling the other Z-senshi in on who/what Majin Buu was ("basically a huge pink bubblegum monster in a fat stage right about now. Let's hope we won't get to see him as a kid. He's just pure evil then.") and also properly introducing Shin and Kibito, the Z-senshi was ready to go. Krillin, however, was looking a little apprehensive, so Gohan told him to go back to the WMAT arena.

Krillin refused, joking, "I'd rather know what's going one and be dead than not know and be dead." He elicited small smiles from the nearby warriors at his weak, if true, joke.

At the present, the Z-senshi was perched upon the tallest mountain out there in the driest desert since the Cell Games site. It could very well _be_ the Cell Games site, as it was dry as heck and just as hot. Perfect climate for someone like Dabura (hehe.). They were overlooking an elliptical ship complete with flashy lights and 300-miles-per-hour capable rockets. Clearly Babidi was one of those luxury freaks and wasn't afraid to show it off.

Gohan snorted at the ship. It looked just like Frieza's, only smaller and without a central column to have to run around. A sure improvement, that he was confident of. Right.

Goten was wide-eyed. He had seen plenty of spaceships in his small lifetime, but not one like this. Gohan looked down at his brother and chuckled at the sight of said person's eyes bugging out two centimeters from his head.

"Cool spaceship, huh, squirt?" he asked, still amused. Shin looked up at the hybrid, then looked down at the other hybrid. He watched them converse easily with each other, as if they'd known each other forever, not 24 hours as the others appeared to think. Of course, we all know that's true, so the Supreme Kaio is not as naïve as he has been portrayed (riight…), but still…!

After five minutes, Shin got impatient, wondering what the heck they were waiting for (SP: YEAH! What _are_ we waiting for?! Aline: You're asking me?!). he was even about to ask, when an explosion rocked the ship and sent smoke their way.

"There it goes," Gohan muttered. Piccolo smirked as well. The plan was going into action, Phase I.

The day before the tournament, Gohan had scouted the ship. Babidi hadn't been in it at that time, either, so Gohan had felt free to explore. He had discovered and did away with many interesting things, leaving behind a few guards and a few monsters to not arouse too much attention. He had also left behind several ki bombs, and all were set to go off consecutively at precisely this time. even now, the second and third ki bombs, and finally the fourth and fifth. Now whatever monsters were there were all dead (yes, even Yarkon. Gohan spared a lot of energy for him, having been tipped off by some guard dude who _particularly_ didn't like him. The guard died after Gohan thanked him, however.), and the coast was clear to Majin Buu's egg.

Shin and Kibito led the gang down to the ship. They burst through the entrance, to approach the center hub (which opened obediently) and down all five floors that way. They saw much of Gohan's handiwork in the ship on the fifth floor; Gohan simply shrugged modestly. Good thing Chichi wasn't there, though. Who knows how much rage she'd have vented at Gohan's new and destructive hobby.

Goten and Trunks stared at Gohan in awe. Krillin sent him a sly look that made Gohan grin. Goku gave him a thumbs-up, while Vegeta smirked. Piccolo raised an invisible eyebrow and Shin and Kibito looked shocked. Gohan just shrugged again and set off to the strangest thing never before seen; Majin Buu's egg, the lair of the most evil monster Earth had ever seen. Still recovering from Cell, that was saying a lot.

Gohan stopped at the egg and could easily imagine the form of Fat Buu, as he'd nicknamed the fat stage, curled up as pink smoke in there. The demi-Saiyan shook his head pityingly for the little monster, imprisoned for millennia in such tight quarters. He frowned again, however, when he noticed that Buu's energy meter pointed to a quarter full. Must have been the ki bombs, he mused, especially Yarkon's.

His head lifted as a ki that had been carefully monitored over the past two months came zooming in. Casually, so as not to create alarm, he said,

"Heads up. Babidi's coming home."

Eyes widened and frantic whispers were heard. Gohan raised his eyebrows at the panic level steadily rising from Krillin and simply looked at the Kaioshin. A nod passed between them, and Kibito joined in on the exchange with his own nod. Ignoring any and all questions from the others present, they all turned and faced the walls in three opposite directions. Closing their eyes, all three assumed three individual positions, but there was one thing all three poses had in common. They were all positions that one had the choice of assuming in order to use ki, especially ki magic.

Kibito, the frown ever present on his face, raised his arm, hand palm-up. A transparent red triangle rose from his hand and grew bigger, widening to envelope not only Kibito but the Kaioshin, Gohan, all of the Z-senshi with them. The triangle continued to spread to the walls of the room and settled just beyond them, acting as the front guard force of the shields being put up.

Shin held his hands parallel to each other, as if he were tapping into his ki for the first time (a.k.a. Videl's hand position in the series). A look of peace came over his face, even as he whispered two words. With those two words (the authoress seems to think those words are "Giro anon," but the muse is skeptical.), a deep purple square that was, of course, transparent, exploded from the air between Shin's hands. It rapidly covered ground, sweeping through Kibito and Gohan, making the Z-senshi gasp as it ripped through them (Goten merely giggled as though it tickled him, and Trunks scowled), and ploughed through the air to Kibito's triangle. It slowed just before it hit the triangle, however, and set into the walls just as gently as Kibito's had just beyond the walls. This was the second of the shields in the process of being put up, and assumedly the strongest. But now it was Gohan's turn, and time for him to show his stuff.

For his part, Gohan merely folded his fingers over each other, all of them except for the index fingers and the thumbs. The forefingers he aligned up with each other, kind of like a steeple pointing to the stars. The thumbs were crossed over each other, almost in a "twirl us!" position. Gohan bowed his head and started chanting, a look of concentration on his face.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten," he intoned. A faint green light started to appear in a loose circle around his hands.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten," the demi-Saiyan repeated. The faint light grew stronger, dancing around his hands in that circle. Goten watched in fascination as the light sparks came into view encircling his brother's hands. He wished he could do something like that.

Gohan, deep into his ki center, was about to reiterate the spell incantation when he felt someone on his left side. Judging from the ki signature, it was his ototo, the Squirt. Not losing his concentration, Gohan opened one eye and Grinned™ at Goten, before returning to his spell. The Grin™ disappeared and four words rang again in the silence that had fallen.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten."

However, instead of just Gohan's voice filling the silence, Goten's soprano joined in. The forest green light around Gohan's hands moved to his forefingers, while Goten's hands bore flashy blue sparks themselves.

The Z-senshi stared at the unbelievable sight before them. Gohan and Goten were both doing the same thing as the other, but none of them would have believed that they could do it. After all, this was ki magic, not regular ki. Gohan really wasn't a surprise, he had obviously picked up new talents in the Other World, but Goten too…? It was mind-blowing.

But the two Z-senshi who were the most surprised were Vegeta and Piccolo. Vegeta, because he had never heard of or seen ki being used like this before, and Piccolo, because he'd never known Gohan was capable of doing this sort of thing. If he had….

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten."

Gohan's ball of forest green ki grew slightly bigger on the tips of his fingers, while Goten's grew more solid, like his brother's had. However, there was a little more difficulty in Goten's maintenance of his sky blue ki, as it was fluctuating wildly and trying to get away from Goten. But Gohan solved that with a telepathic message.

Hey Goten. Try to control your ki magic. It's just basically ki, so think about what I taught you about ki control, he said.

Goten thought, and the sky blue ki fluttering around his hands, steadied, just time for the next chant. With this one, Gohan's ki started spiraling up and away, while Goten's started getting bigger out of turn. The sixth chant saw Goten's ki finally advance to the fingertips, and Gohan's continuing to spiral. However, on the next two incantations, Gohan held back his ki magic so Goten could catch up. Not only did Goten's ki catch up, but it also merged with Gohan's ki, forming into a ball of transparent blue-green ki. The ball astonished the Kaios as they watched it happen. No ki should have been able to fuse with another's ki, that was impossible and defied all laws of ki! Yet here it was, and it was a true phenomenon (Think how Vegeta's reacting then.).

Seven more chants, fifteen in all, of "Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten" brought the ball hovering just within Shin's ki. Gohan told Goten to prepare himself for the end of the spell. Goten pouted inwardly but took his brother's advice and prepared for the mental _pop! _Gohan had told him about. This mental _pop!_ usually followed a separation of ki magic as a spell was completed. Gohan followed with his own preparations and yelled with Goten,

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus _tirenaten!_"

The mental _pop!_ went off in Gohan and Goten's heads and their bubble leapt free of their control. It jumped only slightly before it hovered perfectly in place, leaving Gohan to remark to Goten,

Nice job, squirt, for your first time using ki magic.

Goten Grinned™ and followed Gohan in the walk back to Buu's egg. They seemed oblivious to the stares they got, especially from Trunks, who was getting jealous of Goten again. Gohan smirked slightly at the feeling coming off of Trunks in waves and sent to him,

Hey Trunks, don't be so jealous. I'm your brother too, you know.

Needless to say, Trunks was absolutely delighted.

Also needless to say was the shock Shin felt when he examined the Son brother's ki shield and found it to be stronger than his own by meters. Shin had known that Gohan was strong mentally, but Goten was surprising, with the amount of mental fortitude Shin sensed in the ball that came from him. Now how could that be? Goten could not have achieved this level of mental strength without some serious tutoring, and Shin doubted that he had done that tutoring himself. Who then…?

He turned his head to stare the puzzling child and was suddenly struck again by the picture of Gohan and Goten together and how they seemed to understand each other completely. Gohan suddenly laughed at something that Goten said, and Shin's suspicions were confirmed at the way the tone of the laugh was teasing, but not in a harsh way. Only an oniisan who had spent a lot of time around an ototosan could laugh that way. A lot of time, as in a year. Somehow, Shin did not know how, Gohan had found a way to cross over into the Living World from his afterlife to keep in touch with Goten. Shin was determined to find out how the hybrid Saiyan had done this. The reason wasn't to bug Gohan just for the heck of it, it was to find out if the way Gohan had found was easily accessible and so was potentially harmful to the Living World.

However, one glance at the necklace Gohan wore so proudly would have told Shin all he needed to know. Alas, the things in life that are in plain sight are often the things that are not seen until too late. And so it would be with Shin.

Gohan looked down at the energy meter again. It still quivered at a quarter full, but Gohan had the suspicion that if any of the barriers that had just been put up fell, the energy meter would shoot up in power. Gohan vowed for that not to happen and added some of his ki magic to strengthen both Kibito and Shin's barriers.

Gohan felt Babidi's ki enter the ship and almost felt the waves of anger roll off of him. Gohan had difficulty remembering if the central hub had closed after them or not, but he finally remembered that it did. So Babidi must be enraged at something else then. Maybe it was the disappearance of the majority of Babidi's guards and henchmen. Or was it the death of Dabura, whom Shin had said was Babidi's right hand man? Gohan smirked. Either way, there would be panic in Babidi's emotional waves.

Gohan searched again, deeper, and found exactly what he was looking for. Pure panic roiled throughout Babidi's emotional wavelengths, heightened more than the death of Dabura really was worth. Gohan knew that it was probably also the deaths of most of Babidi's (and now all) henchmen that caused such third-degree panic. Gohan's smirk only grew wider.

Vegeta caught the evil smirk on the Kakka—no—_Gohan's_ face and had to keep from doing the same. Darn it. Whatever emotion any of those darn Kakka-clowns showed was always infectious, even on Kakkabrat no. 2. Vegeta found himself wanting to smirk, still, even if he had no idea what he was smirking about (Aww, isn't that sweet. I didn't know that Veggie-chan could be so sentimental…). But then Vegeta caught a sense of a foreign ki way beyond the borders of those eternally strange ki shields. The ki reeked of ki magic and corruption, so it could be only one thing. Vegeta met Gohan's eyes and didn't even try to stop the smirk now. This was going to be fun.

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Gabrielle sat in shock after hearing the words of her mentor, Berkley. She stared at the woman with short blond hair, bright green eyes, and only a few wrinkles to show her age. Berkley had on a red tank top under a long black jacket she had yet to take off, snazzy jeans that ended just below the knees, and stylish blue pinstriped sneakers.

Right now, Berkley's eyes were filled with worry for her student, and her hands were twisting around each other, mirroring that same worry. Gabrielle had never seen her mentor so worried as she was now, and if she had not been so shocked she would have been alarmed herself. As it was, however, she was too numb to feel anything other than shock.

The chonoryoku-sha's world was crashing down around her ears.

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Translations:

Kaioshin: Supreme Kaio

Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten: Ki magic, help, do, and obey. (NO, NOT JAPANESE)

Ototo: younger brother, own

Oniisan: older brother, someone else's

Ototosan: younger brother, someone else's

Chonoryoku-sha: psychic

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A/n: /Grins suspensefully/ I like this chapter ending!

Not so long in updating this time! I'm so proud of myself!! I wasn't even inspired all that much from my newly vaporized muse either! Maybe that tells you something!

Readers: Like what?

Like, maybe I don't need my muse!!

Readers: O.o OH, YES YOU DO!!

O.o OK! LOL!

Note about the translations: Since I have my own dictionary now, instead of using an online one, the words are going to be different, like for otoutosan, it's now going to be "ototosan." I think they're the same, only with an accent mark over the second "o" in "ototosan," but I trust my material dictionary instead of that online one, so there you go. Sorry for any confusion.

On Saturday, I fell of a horse AGAIN, so I'm sore, so BE HAPPY this got updated today. OK?!?!

Also, on the 26th, progress will be slowed 'cause I have driver's training to undergo. YES!!! I FINALLY GET TO LEARN HOW TO DRIVE!!! WHOOHOO!

Ahem! Onto the reviews!

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SS2 Megami-sama: Oh no! You're hung up! NOOOOOOOOOOO! /Tears form in eyes/ /Turns wildly to Tobi and Yuki/ INSPIRE, NOW!

F. Muses: O.O OK, OK!! /Hyperventilate while SP looks away/

I know that Florida's overrated. Nice to see someone shares my opinion. Hee. No offense whatsoever. What's a heat index?

Nice job in the State Chorus competit! Who'd you beat?

I'll give Kyo-chan back to you if you need him. Or I could give you one of my muses (Aline. She's a regular slave driver, though. Whatever works I guess. /Shrugs/).

Call 555-**AASN** to get emergency inspiration when you need it, however you need it. Be warned, the muses will not show up, but calling this fake emergency hotline will cause you to have an inspiration burst so hot, you'll wonder why you didn't call us before. /Winks/ :D

New Dye: Yes, I've been on vacation. From this fic. Heh.

Romance would be pointless, unless the female OC was dead. /Shrugs/

Hey! I thought I already answered that question! Well, anyway, I'll answer it again. I was doing random match drawings for the tournament, you know, the pull a name out of a hat kind of thing, and the match I drew was Gohan vs. Pintar. Sorry! /Shrugs/

Don't you think that Pintar having his big fat belly pushed all the way back to his spine is painful enough?! Sheesh! Gosh, you're heartless when it comes to humans vs. Saiyans. Yikes. O.o Besides, Gohan isn't the sort of person to hurt humans really bad, so bad they're barely alive. That's Vegeta. LOL!

I won't give a hint on what the Not-So-Golden Trio has planned to play. Even I don't know at this moment. Aline prolly does tho. Right now, thought, she's too lazy to slap me. /Looks at Aline flipping through the manga "Bleach" Vol. I/ Yeah.

Thanks! I updated REALLY soon this time! YAY!!

DBZ Chick1: You're welcome for the reviews! Thank _you_ for reviewing all the time! I think you're one of the constants here! O.o Gotta dedicate a chap to you sometime. /Thinks/

Mayrana: Is this a better cliffie for you, my dear? LOL! I worked on it, all right. I worked on it. /Smiles proudly/ No help from Aline, either. Hmm…!

To the next round? Really? Are you sure about that? /Grinz mischievously/

O.O /Strains/ M...Mu...Must...re...res...resist...the...Z...eee...Sen...s...shi... /_Pop!_ soundsSP goes flying/

/Sits up rubbing already sore back/ As you can see, I obviously can't resist the Z-senshi as a whole. Although I really didn't need Shin in there. Yikes.

I updated only five days after the previous chap!! See, the whole Z-senshi thing does work (except for the pervs, thank you for excluding _them_. /Glares at them/ Dirty old men...)!!

D'ya consider five days a long time? /Blinks innocently/

Briememory: I updated soon! Five days! A record these days I tell you. Heh. /Sweatdrops/

Marshmellow13Dragon: No need to apologize. As long as you read my stuff, I be happy. :0)

Another person who likes how Gohan defeated Pintar!! YAY!

Consummate: 1) to bring to completion, perfection, or fulfillment; achieve 2) (skipped) -- You don't want to know this one, believe me.

Bottom line—consummated means finished. Heh. I just look the words up in the thesaurus. I don't know exactly what they mean, either. Oh well.

The blue Majin: Pui Pui the Insane of Planet Where's-He-From. LOL.

To Sarki: One person who wants to beat the fangirls up. Thank you. /Checks Sarki down on THE LIST OF FANGIRL DOOM/

5 min older, eh? ... O.O

DBZ Fan: I updated soon! ONLY 5 DAYS!! I know, I'm surprised myself. Hee.

simba-rulz: No, Amber, there will not be 600 trillion (give or take a few zeros) Gohans in this story. Just two is enough for me in **Kakkhan**, and **VA**'s resident bad-boy Gohan is more than enough for me to handle for this ficcy. Not to mention to Goten and Trunks. Heh. /Sweatdrops/

Another person to kill the fangirls. Thank you. /Checks Amber on THE LIST OF FANGIRL DOOM/

Yes, I know you would throw yourself at him. I was actually thinking about putting in that tidbit, but decided otherwise. Heh.

Thank you for your fanlisting reassurance. I shall be patient. /Crosses fingers/

Ohh boy, a fanlisting for you. I suppose I have to join, ne? OK... OF COURSE I'll JOIN!!! JEEZ!!

I UPDATED!! 5 DAYS!!

Daisuki Gohan-chan and Goten-chan!

AAS-sama /Bows/

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Poll Tabs:

Ugh, romance. I'm sorry, guys. I've totally changed my mind about the plot, and the role that I had for the romance in here, but in the new plot there isn't really anything that the romance I had in mind really can do, so I might as well not write it. Sorry guys, that was a complete waste of votes, but I appreciate the feedback anyway! Lets me know what I can write in the future! Thankies!

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Thanks to **SS2 Megami-sama**, **New Dye**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Mayrana**,** Briememory**,** Marshemellow13Dragon**, **DBZ Fan**, and **simba-rulz** for your excellent, excellent, excellent reviews!!!

So, what's going on with Gabrielle now? Why is she so shocked? And how's Babidi going to react to intruders in his home and with no henchmen to protect him? Find out, on the next **Vigilante Angel**.

All right, peeps, that's it for this time around. See ya next time, on **Vigilante Angel**!

TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

[Updated 07/19/04]


	26. Chapter the Twenty Fifth: Irresolution

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-fifth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen?

Disclaimer: Mesa only own Arikeru, Osi and Ron, The "On" Trio, the plot, Gabrielle, Berkley, and the phrase, "Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten." I don't know that I own the idea of ki magic, but in case I do, I patent it here. Now, did you hear me mention DBZ in any of that up there? No? Thank you.

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-)

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics, like _Blinded_ by **dragonscales**, _Hybrid Theory: Generations_ by **The Sh33p **and _Once Upon a Chibi_ by **Candyland**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

CHAPTER DEDICATION: To **DBZ Chick1**, for being an ever-constant reviewer! YAY **DBZ CHICK1**! /Claps thunderously/

(Be rewarded with a chapter for extraordinary things!)

A/n: Heya guys! Whassup?

Aline: Who cares? Let's just get on with the fic!

SP: Now, now, Aline, I'll get to it. Be patient.

Aline: Hmpf.

SP: Aline's just grumpy 'cuz she had to wait for Kyoku and Autumn of **Double Hate** to finish inspiring me before she could. Heh. Muses…so competitive. O.o;

Anyway! This is a bit of a mean chap, but I'm not going to tell you how exactly mean it is. Just read and find out.

Aline: Get on with it already!!

SP: /Looks™ at Aline/ Out, Aline.

Aline: Fine!! /Huffily stomps out/

SP: /Looks at reviewers/ Remind you of someone? **:D** All right, then. Let's move on.

Enjoy!

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Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Annoying Author's Comments on the Story in the Story)

:#:#:#: = Section break/Scene change/End Chapter

[Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft]

::**_Flashback_**::

:#:#:#:

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten," he intoned. A faint green light started to appear in a loose circle around his hands.

—In Babidi's ship, Middle of Chapter the Twenty-fifth

:#:#:#:

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

But then Vegeta caught a sense of a foreign ki way beyond the borders of those eternally strange ki shields. The ki reeked of ki magic and corruption, so it could be only one thing. Vegeta met Gohan's eyes and didn't even try to stop the smirk now. This was going to be fun.

:#:#:#:

Right now, Berkley's eyes were filled with worry for her student, and her hands were twisting around each other, mirroring that same worry. Gabrielle had never seen her mentor so worried as she was now, and if she had not been so shocked she would have been alarmed herself. As it was, however, she was too numb to feel anything other than shock.

The chonoryoku-sha's world was crashing down around her ears.

:#:#:#:

[1st Tournament Day, Still]

"Shin, Babidi's freaking out. Why don't you and Kibito go out and have a little discussion with him? We'll take care of things here," Gohan told Shin, a wicked gleam in his eye. He added the last part as Shin opened his mouth. The Supreme Kaio closed the offending appendage with a snap, then looked at Kibito, who was again purple-faced. He nodded sharply and took off into the air. Gohan paid no attention, as usual, to Kibito's glare, and returned to the egg. Kibito had no choice but to follow his master.

Vegeta smirked again at Gohan as the demi-Saiyan put a hand on Buu's egg, then turned fully to it. Goku noticed what he was doing and watched with interest as the egg glowed. It seemed that Gohan was attempting to draw the energy out of Majin Buu's egg, and doing it quite well, despite the egg's glowing, throwing pink light right into Gohan's eyes.

Gohan could feel the egg fighting for the possession of the energy. He fought back, gaining an unit of energy for every assault he made upon the egg's inhabitant, Majin Buu. Buu, who was as yet not prepared for such a strong opponent, gave up almost all of his energy before he came back. But Gohan was like a bloodhound set upon the trail of energy, and would not be deterred from getting all unit's of Buu's energy. After six minutes, seven seconds, and forty-three milliseconds of energy-grabbing, Gohan plucked out the last one and hurriedly withdrew from the egg before Buu could react. He could feel the energy flowing with him, replenishing the mental energy he'd used to fight Buu and a little bit more than he originally had. His physical energy was also given a slight boost, which Gohan appreciated. It would come in handy.

The demi-Saiyan looked up just in time to feel Kibito's barrier close over their heads. Wow. They took a long time to leave. Must have had trouble finding the gap Gohan had opened for them. The demi-Saiyan shrugged casually and started monitoring Babidi's ki again, oblivious to the activity going on within the egg.

:#:#:#:

Back at the WMAT arena, Videl was getting worried. Gabrielle hadn't shown up since she'd gone to go pay Berkley, her mentor, a visit, and it'd been over forty-five minutes. Now what was going on?

Videl got up and paced around the second suite the Satans owned at the WMAT. This was way too long to be natural. Gabrielle never kept someone waiting for so long. 15 minutes was the max that the psychic had ever been late, and then it hadn't counted. Videl wondered what it could be that was taking her friend so long. It certainly was Gabrielle herself, and she didn't play pranks. So what was it?

Erasa popped her head into the suite to watch Videl stomp over to the far side of her.

"There you are, Videl! Wanna come and see Sharpner bench-press 250 pounds? He says he can do it, but I think he's just boasting." Erasa giggled, a hand held over her mouth in an unconscious flirty gesture.

Videl sighed at her friend. Some people had all the luck in the world, not being able to worry about anything. She shook her head and resumed pacing.

"Brie's not here yet?" Erasa asked. Videl turned to look at her and shook her head again at Erasa's sympathetic look. Erasa's forehead furrowed for a second, then cleared as she shrugged.

"Oh well! I'm sure she's fine. You sure you don't want to see Sharpie make a loser out of himself?" Erasa asked again. Videl refused a third time, letting Erasa flounce off with a cheery, "See ya!"

Videl watched Erasa disappear into the distance, but thoughts of Gabrielle were still running throughout her head. For some reason (Uh-oh, here we go…Always a catch.), Videl had the anxiety that she would never see Gabrielle again (ooh a DBZ cliché! Niiice…). It wasn't like the 15-minute wait that National Hero parade a few years ago, no, this was real bone-chilling, stomach-roiling, head-spinning fear for her friend, and Videl was helpless to do anything to quell that fear.

Videl clenched her hands into fists. This was exactly why she had joined in with the Police Department. She hated feeling helpless, and watching crime happen made her feel exactly that. Sure, the police could do a little more sometimes, but Videl honestly liked the activity, the thought that she was helping make the world a little safer, one criminal at a time.

But now, Videl couldn't do anything at all. This was worse than when the Cell Games were going on, but the TV set was not. Remembering the incident, Videl shuddered. Correction, make that almost worse than the Cell Games. She shivered again at the memory and forced her mind away from it (Aww, is our fearless little Satan getting cold-footed here? How sad. What should we do to help you shake away the shakes? /Sarcastic/)

Come on, Gabrielle! This was getting old! Videl stopped pacing and flopped onto one of the couches available. She was getting frustrated because she was worried, and that was not a good combination for Videl (when is it for anybody?). Videl took deep breaths, trying to calm down, but no could do. She started fiddling with her pigtails agitatedly, a long forgotten habit unemployed since her mother died before the Cell Games. It had been so long since she'd done it, Videl was half-surprised when she realized that she _was_ doing it. She flung her hair over her shoulders again, then sighed deeply in resignation. If Gabrielle didn't show up in fifteen minutes, Videl was going to the gym. Maybe there she could work her frustration and worry off.

Fifteen minutes passed, and Videl still waited, all alone in the Satan master suite no. 2.

:#:#:#:

Gohan's head whipped around as he smelled a strange smell emanating from behind him. Pink clouds were billowing from within the egg, enough that Gohan took emergency action and looped part of his and Goten's barrier around the egg, a quick lasso action to make any cowboy jealous, even the most seasoned ones (Is Gohan a cowboy? Just wondering. /Evil cackle/). He cinched the barrier back to itself just in time to feel Babidi's ki wink out and Shin and Kibito open up Kibito's triangle barrier once more.

Gohan sent a message to them to hurry up via telepathy, and could almost see them start in trepidation. He dismissed them and grimly refocused on the egg and what it was up to.

:#:#:#:

Again, back at the WMAT (/Cackles/ Yes, I know I am evil. Muahaha!!), the other Z-senshi members were also getting worried. Who was this new threat, or more accurately, _what_ was this new threat (considering that all the evil tyrants weren't even human), and how strong was he/she/it? was it stronger than Cell? If so, then how long would it take to take him/her/it down? It only took a day to defeat Cell, but then they'd been lucky and had a HFIL of a lot of advance warning. This time there had been none.

Yet, when they reflected back up on the events, Gohan hadn't seemed confused. In fact, he was the only reason the Z-senshi even knew that there was a threat to Earth, and what it was named: Majin Buu.

Kaios, what an ugly name. Couldn't this one have come up with a better name? Ach, it was better than Cell, at least. I mean, who calls their creation Cell? Or plain numbers from 16-21? Hello, some creativity need here!!

Chichi was still bothered over the fact that her little boy Goten had gone with Gohan, and Gohan had let him. Gohan was supposed to be Goten's older brother; he was supposed to stop Goten from coming! And Trunks too! What had Gohan, Goku, and Vegeta been thinking?! Well, maybe not Vegeta, he didn't seem to be much of a father to Trunks, if at all, but Goku! Her Goku! And Gohan!

Bulma was thinking of how either euphoric Vegeta would be, or how grumpy her mate would be. Euphoric as in bragging about how much stronger he was than Kakkarot, the third-class clown, or grumpy as in complaining about how the opponent had wasted valuable training time. Either way did not present them with a great situation concerning Vegeta, that's for sure (Heh.).

Yamcha was relieved that he hadn't been invited/forced to join the others in fighting for the Earth again (yeah, right you little punk). He wouldn't have to ruin a perfectly good outfit, nor run the risk of a direct death at the power of this Buu guy. Now, all he ran the risk of was dying if the Earth was blown up. Which, Yamcha realized, was a pretty big risk, if Buu was at least as strong as Cell. He gulped.

Eighteen reflected on how brave her husband was to go off to war again after how strong Cell had proven to be. She should have gone herself, but she had Marron to take care of, and she would not abandon her child, her live _human_ child, just to maybe fight someone who could blow up the Earth. Eighteen had not really trained since the Cell Games, and knew that she had not had a chance to beat the current overlord of power. There was only a 35% chance that she would get to fight the monster, and those decreased even more with the number of other fighters that were there. So no, that was not happening, although it would have been a nice switch, Eighteen fighting for the world, not against it. Still, she could dream.

Marron was paying no attention at all to the tense air inside the fighter's lounge. She was only interested in the new coloring book her mother had brought along with her. Marron didn't care that she was going out of the line on Sleeping Beauty; she just liked the gold crayon she was using. She put the crayon away (more like tossed it) and reached for another one, red this time, and slathered it all over the page in front of her. There! All pretty now! Marron was proud of herself, until she spotted something out of sync (what's out of sync? Red and gold go perfect together! What are ya talkin' about?!?!): a looming thing up in the corner with a long neck, strange streaky things coming from its square on top of the neck, and an oval body following the neck. Marron remembered that it was a dragon as Papa had called it (Oh, that. Heh.), and exchanged red for violent purple (O.o; **…**). There, Marron decided, after several minutes. Now onto the next one!

Muten Roshi, well, we'll ski him, him and Oolong. Don't want to know what these two perverts are thinking; it would just ruin the credibility of this fic if I wrote what the dirty old man was thinking. And no, it's not quite what we're thinking, but very close. Oops, wait, Roshi just spotted a girl. Miswrote. Now he's thinking what we're thinking he's thinking. Joy.

Puar, Yamcha's blue cat, was nowhere to be seen for the second time since Yamcha appeared in Dragonball. She and Yamcha had split ways long ago after agreeing to separate for a few months. Those few months had lengthened into years, and only the old Kami knows where she went. Piccolo and Nails, and Dende too, however, don't care (And neither do we, but I'm in for suspense, so you'll just have to suffer with my chattiness here. **:)**). And of course, Puar knew where she was, but was she opening up her mouth and telling in her squeaky little voice? No. So we'll just trudge on in confusion.

The one thing all of these people had in common in terms of their current thought patterns (yes they do have something in common here WOW!) was that they all wondered if the Z-senshi would come back alive. They wondered what would happen to Gohan and Goku if they were killed, as it was rumored that a person who was killed in the Afterlife was gone forever, never to be seen again. They wondered if Krillin, with his happy-go-lucky nature, would be there for both Eighteen and Marron, if Piccolo would still be hanging around, and if Vegeta would still stomp around Capsule Corps yelling for his food (Well, only Bulma was thinking that, but still.). They wondered if Goten and Trunks would get in the way, or if they would be beneficial in the fight, like Gohan had been against Radditz, his mean old uncle from the Saiyans, the race Vegeta still hailed from and still lorded over, even though it was long dead and gone. Thinking of Vegeta's stubborn pride made Bulma smile briefly in remembrance of one incident untold of in all these seven years (Wow, been seven years already in **Vigilante Angel**. I guess I should hold an anniversary for how many years **VA** has covered in here. Hahaha!).

They also all wondered if Goku and Gohan would want to come back to Earth after this. Would Goku want to involve himself in the life of Goten after seven years? Would Gohan be a real big brother to him (Ha! They have no idea of what they're thinking.) after this? Who knows? All they knew was that the Son brothers seemed to have clicked, and the father/son duo of Goku and Goten seemed to have clicked as well, albeit on a lesser scale than Gohan/Goten. Actually, Goten was a bit of a shy boy, at least that was the case when Goten had met the other Z-senshi for the first time, and with Goku, even. But, they remembered belatedly, Goten hadn't been shy around Gohan. In truth, Goten had jumped all over Gohan, literally. And Gohan had seemed to expect that, as he hadn't been knocked down by Goten's "unexpected" (SP: /moves fingers in quotation marks in appropriate spot/) leap onto him.

Great, more mysteries. First, Gohan was the only one who knew about the threat to Earth. Second, Gohan and Goten got along famously well, _too_ famously well. Third, he knew the Supreme Kaio enough to tell him off. Fourth, the sword Arikeru on his back. Fifth… well, the Z-senshi didn't know if there was a fifth mystery, but they bet that there was one, with every fiber of their bodies (got that right! Fifth is Gohan knows ki magic. Sixth is how is Gohan and Goku going to stay here for the whole tournament if they've only got 48 hours, 24 hours apiece? Hmm…)

As if they didn't have enough to think about.

:#:#:#:

Translations:

Chonoryoku-sha: psychic

HFIL: Home for Infinite Losers, aka HELL

Muten: Master (?)

:#:#:#:

A/n: Muahaha!! I have managed to fend you all off and give you something to think about! /Polishes nails on shirt/ Aren't I so evil?

And skilled too! Jeez, you don't know how many times I've had to stop myself from giving away too much in one sitting. Sure, you would have some productive stuff to read, yeah, but I wanted to be ultra mysterious and have you hanging on the edge of your seats. Was I successful? Can I go on now? Am I going to get flames for my evilness? Please Kaios, no, no, no, to the last one. Forget I even typed that. Just review, and look forward to the next** Vigilante Angel**. Yeah. /Sighs/

:#:#:#:

Reviews, ppl!

Goku-lover21: Ya saw what happened next. Cya! **:D**

New Dye: And this reviewer is back with her typical list of questions! Good! I was wondering where it went! LOL!

Okie-doke, questions…

1a) Gohan was using ki magic to heal himself after one duel with Osi and Ron. I didn't tell you when Gohan learned it, specifically, so you didn't miss it. Ahh, the joys of being an authoress.

1b) The On trio taught Go-chan a few things? MY On-trio? O.o Weird. It isn't told when the Ki magic thing started. It's implied, so you'll havta puzzle dat one out for yourself. Heehee. /Snickers evilly/

2) Whaddaya mean? /Blinks innocently/

3) Everyone isn't really surprised at what Gohan can do. They're surprised that **GOTEN** can do those same things. It says so specifically in the chap. Yes it does!! Re-read it if ya need to.

4) Not tellin'.

5) Didn't I tell ya Gabrielle was a psychic?

6) I don't know… you'll have to read. Muahaha!

Good analyses of the characters!! You have me laughing at Veggie-chan and Goku's descrips!

Briememory: Ya know, I was actually planning the former of the two to happen. Are you psychic too?

Sorry, couldn't beat the record. Dratticus maximus!

If Gabrielle's powers are being blocked by Buu, then how come she can still tell what the normal humans are thinking? And if it was ki magic that was doing that, then how can she not read Krillin, Goku, Vegeta, etc, who don't use ki magic? Good questions. Can you find the answers?

DBZ Chick1: Thanx! Of course I'd dedicate a chap to you! You're one of my regulars! **:D**

SS2 Megami-sama: Kyo-chan eats all my salad for me. This is good, because I really don't like salads. **:D** Works out. **:D**

How many 'Partners' stories are there? And btw, I-WANT-TO-READ!! I've BEEN wanting to read, FOR A WHILE NOW!! Now whose fault is that? /Crosses arms and taps foot/ Hmm? I'm waiting! /Glares/

Mayrana: My hard cliffie work has been noticed. I am grateful. /Bows/

What do you mean will they be in time for the next round? There might not even BE a next round. Muahaha… /Wrings hands maniacally/

Yes, it works much better without Shin. /Shudders/

Night-owl123: I updated!

simba-rulz: Brotherly love, yes. So kawaii. Those fan girls are approximately…in the hospital right now from the three girl ninja squad sent out to destroy them. A few are even in the morgue and being checked over for their very interesting cause of death situation. Ahem.

I'm going to ignore the 600 trillion Gohans demand there, Amber, _again_. Rant on about it all you like, I'm not going to say anything. You have been warned. Hehehehe…

I updated… Now sit back for some Amber action. /Patiently watches video of Amber ranting/

:#:#:#:

Thanks to **Goku-lover21**, **New Dye**, **Briememory**, **DBZ Chick1**, **SS2 Megami-sama**, **Mayrana**, **Night-Owl123**, and **simba-rulz** for their excellent reviews of last chap! A salutation to you guys! /Salutes/

What the heck is going on?! First, Gohan sucks out the energy from within the egg, but the egg is still emitting pink smoke! Then we find out that Gabrielle, who normally isn't late, has been missing for a total of sixty minutes! Then we look into the mind of the Z-senshi left behind and see a lot of doubt and apprehension! The question of the chapter for all three mysteries is why?! Find the answer to the question, only, on the next **Vigilante Angel**! Be there!

Not a bad chappie, in terms of length! I could have written more, but what would I have written about? Oh, the Buu situation, that? Hmm… NO! /Reviewers face-fault/ When we get to the Buu situation is when we get to the Buu situation. 'Kay?

Reviewers: NO!!!!

SP: /Face-faults with a huge sweatdrop to match/ OK… maybe I'm going to far here.

Reviewers: YES!!!

SP: Hey! Blame my muse! Don't come after me!

Reviewers: /Grab baseball bats and chase after muse, who suddenly pops up/

SP: That's right, blame the muse. Hehehe… Oh well, time to get to work again!

Ttyl!

TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

[Updated 08/19/04]


	27. Chapter the Twenty Sixth: Summons

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Twenty-sixth

Summary: Gohan dies at the end of the Cell Games. He is then appointed as Goten's guardian angel when Goten is born. What'll happen?

Disclaimer: Oh really? If I were Akira Toriyama, do ya think my penname would be **TheShadowPanther**? Do you think I'd be writing fanfictions about DBZ? You do? Oy. /Bangs head on table/ Ouch. This bump on my head is your fault!!! /Pouts and stomps away from laptop/ I'm leaving!

There are definitely some OOC moments in the story. Don't worry about them, they're okay in an AU. Aren't they? ;-)

I also use a lot of ideas from my favorite fics like Blinded by **dragonscales**, Kokuhaku by **Skadu**, and Dance Among the Stars by **DemonDancing** and **Gohan's Kat**. So no suing me or reporting me for plagiarism. :p Unfortunately they don't know I'm using their ideas, so if anyone would like to oblige me, go right ahead! Good publicity for me! ;-)

CHAPTER DEDICATION: To **SS2 Megami-sama**, for surviving Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne, and being her usual self while at it. GO FAL-CHAN!! Everyone clap with me!! /Clapping is heard throughout auditorium/ YAY!!

(Extraordinary things from my reviewers mean a chapter! Go for it!)

A/n: I've lost my notebook with my plot in it, so I'm just winging it here. I have some idea of what happens, but without my notebook, I'm lost. Figures.

Aline: Your fault.

Yeah, I know. NOW LEAVE ALREADY!!

Aline: Gladly. /Disappears with a _pop_/

Bad muse, bad.

* * *

Thinking

Telepathy/Bond

"Speech"

(Annoying Author's Comments on the Story in the Story)

Passage of Time/Other Noteworthy Stuft

::**_Flashback_**::

* * *

Favorite Sentence of the Story So Far:

Great, more mysteries.…As if they didn't have enough to think about.

—Thoughts of the Z-senshi, End of Chapter the Twenty-fifth

* * *

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

Fifteen minutes passed, and Videl still waited, all alone in the Stan master suite no. 2.

* * *

Gohan sent a message to them to hurry up via telepathy, and could almost see them start in trepidation. He dismissed them and grimly refocused on the egg and what it was up to.

* * *

Great, more mysteries. First, Gohan was the only one who knew about the threat to Earth. Second, Gohan and Goten got along famously well, too famously well. Third, he knew the Supreme Kaio enough to tell him off. Fourth, the sword Arikeru on his back. Fifth… well, the Z-senshi didn't know if there was a fifth mystery, but they bet that there was one, with every fiber of their bodies (got that right! Fifth is Gohan knows ki magic. Sixth is how is Gohan and Goku going to stay here for the whole tournament if they've only got 48 hours, 24 hours apiece? Hmm…).

As if they didn't have enough to think about.

* * *

First Tournament Day, Still

Pink smoke continued to surge from the egg as the Kaioshin and his assistant, Kibito, hurriedly descended through the gap Gohan had left in his and Goten's barrier. Gohan absent-mindedly closed it with a _snap_ as he stepped away from the pink smoke. Goten followed, retreating behind Gohan's leg, with his eyes fearful as well as curious. Gohan caught himself retreating and stolidly stood his ground, creating an example for the other Z-senshi to follow and uphold.

Well, not really. Krillin was still backing away, and only a glare from Vegeta stopped him cold. Vegeta hmphed and looked away, missing none of the show as he did so.

The Z-senshi felt that they should have known something like this would happen. It'd been too easy before, what with Gohan taking care of everything. They really should have been fighting to get in, not like the easy entrance they'd had. Again, this was thanks to Gohan. Heck, everything concerning this "disaster" at hand had Gohan right in the thick of things. Even Piccolo was at least informed of the proceedings, with the addition of the Kaioshin and his assistant/servant, but those two didn't really count. All the others were deaf and dumb in consideration, even with the information the Kaioshin had so graciously leaked to them during their flight to here, the middle of nowhere (Have you guys noticed that all DBZ battles have been in deserts in the middle of nowhere? Well, all the really major ones, anyway. What up w/ dat?). But now it looked like this "disaster" was turning into a real-as-the-nose-on-someone's-face life-or-death the-world's-going-to-be-blown-up-if-we-don't-defeat-this-monster crisis. And Gohan had no plans (Or so it seems… Muahaha…).

The pink smoke, after five agonizingly long minutes and fifty-seven seconds, split into three forms. One was fat, as in fat, one was tall and looked to be incredibly thin, and the last was short, almost Goten's size, but not quite there but three or four centimeters (YAY for Goten!!). The short one was also the most evil feeling, as lots of malice was pouring off of it, causing Gohan to almost shut down his empathetic powers all the way to be able to deal with it. And Gohan was a weak_er_ empath. Imagine the pain a full empath with far more power than he would be feeling at this moment (Maybe something akin to Vegeta's pain at his dark revival at Babidi's hands. O.o. Ow, mi cabeza).

The tall one didn't feel quite as evil as the short one did, but there was still a malice factor coming off of him. Gohan, with his severely dampened senses, could barely feel anything from him. And the fat one, there was the least of all. There was no malice or hatred or anything evil whatsoever with this one, only a childlike need for love and fun, as well was curiosity. But Gohan knew what was under those rolls and rolls of pink bubblegum flesh. It was what was under the skin of the tall one and most especially the short one. The short one was making his head scream at him with that very thing. Not a pretty thing to know.

However, there was nothing Gohan could do to stop this. He had planned for the worst-case scenario if it happened, and it looked like the plan would have to come into play soon. Really soon. Thank the Forces for two-month preparations, and with full knowledge of what was going on. Gohan knew that the Earth would have been blown up otherwise (ooohh, foreshadowing!), had not the Kaioshin shown a brief intellect (either that or it was Kibito who did) to tell his knowledge just before it was sorely needed. That was the only thing Gohan respected the Kaioshin for; other than that he was a bumbling and meddling fool who knew nothing, absolutely nothing, about the game the universes played. And Kibito was no better; he was so totally devoted to his master that even if the Kaioshin caused the destruction of all the multiple universes, Kibito wold be right there by his side.

Gohan snorted. Who was the more foolish in this case, the leader, or the follower? He could not answer. He didn't have the time, either, for the pink smoke forms started solidifying.

First, it was the fat one, who turned out to be just as childlike as his waves, and as Kaioshin's last memories of him. Then a purple stick-thin guy followed. Before the final one, the short one, solidified, a minor scuffle (A: /Re-appears/ Minor? Define _minor_, SP. SP: Shut up, Allie. A: Don't. Call. Me. Allie. SP: Whatever.) broke out between the fat and thin Majins. The purple Majin soundly defeated the pink one (although how they could do battle without any energy Gohan had only an inkling) and devoured the loser. Another transformation occurred almost immediately, resulting in what Gohan dubbed Super Buu, and SB had energy. it was shocking to Gohan, much more for the Z-senshi, to feel an energyless entity suddenly mutate into an energy-full entity, and energy that was high, no less. Since Gohan had sucked energy from the egg before it hatched, Super Buu had less energy than what Kaioshin remembered he had. Now, he was at a very strong version of SS2, not the strongest, but out there.

The shortest one, simply called Kid Buu by a certain delinquent, finally solidified. It looked pathetic at first, a walking purplish-pink bubblegum skeleton, which plainly needed energy. However, evil still radiated from him, and Gohan inwardly cringed away from him. Externally, Gohan was strong, as he'd been taught to do since Radditz captured him. Still, Kid Buu didn't do anything but stare and grin mischievously (A: SP, you need a vocab re-check. Again. SP: No, Allie-Allie, I don't. Those words were _intentional_, BOTH times. So go away. A: I _said_, don't. Call. Me. Allie. SP: I didn't! I called you _Allie_-Allie. **:D**) at the Z-senshi. However, when it spotted Super Buu, Kid Buu went berserk. It bared its fanged teeth and chattered crazily at Super Buu, who only cracked its neck at it. Super Buu obviously wasn't worried about the small version of itself, which was a bad mistake, and an easy one. for kids are not supposed to have the power (especially when energyless) to take on a much bigger version of themselves, and to win.

And yet, that was exactly what happened with these two. Kid Buu, apparently infuriated by Super Buu's condescending attitude, snarled again. In a sudden act of speed, that stupefied everyone present, including Super Buu, Kid Buu leapt onto Super Buu and started beating the bigger fighter about the head. The punches were wild but sufficient enough in strength that Super Buu fell back onto its bottom in shock. It never got the chance to recover.

Kid Buu, seizing the moment, immediately latched back onto Super Buu. Super Buu started flailing around, to try and get the little pest off of its back, but Kid Buu wasn't moving, and soon Super Buu was forcefully subdued. The Z-senshi gasped in horror as Kid Buu ripped a piece of its flesh off and slapped it on Super Buu. The dislocated flesh wrapped around Super Buu and absorbed it instantly, then fled back, almost yelling back to Kid Buu, like an excited child running to its mother to show her something really important. In this case, the something _was_ really important, as Super Buu had just been transformed into a lot of energy. Kid Buu welcomed the bundle greedily, or it would have, had Gohan, Vegeta, and Goku all not thrown energy balls at it, hoping to stop it from its obvious intent to reach Kid Buu. Kid Buu snarled at them as the bundle was sent flying against the wall, but unfortunately, that did nothing to change the outcome of the action.

The bundle unstuck itself from the wall and continued on its journey to Kid Buu, but at a faster speed than before. Gohan was the only one who could see it now, but only because he could sense the malicious waves off of the bundle. Seconds later, Kid Buu absorbed the bundle into it, and immediately became totally pink. Its ribs filled out, its stomach grew to a healthier size, and meat appeared on every part of its tiny little physique. Its ki level also grew, and as it grew, so did the waves coming off of it. Gohan now shut down all of his empathetic powers, as it was way too much for him. Seventy-five percent of his power had been shut down before, now it was one hundred percent. Even so, Gohan still felt the malice and the arrogance Kid Buu had, and could only be glad that his head didn't respond to waves when he wasn't being an empath. He still had a headache, but it was fading quickly now, and it was soon gone.

But Kid Buu wasn't. It was now at ki levels of approximately low Super Saiyan Three, but Gohan had the feeling that Kid Buu could still beat anybody who fought him. Especially since Vegeta had only reached SS3 yesterday (was it really only yesterday? It seemed like years had passed since the WMAT tournament had started), and Goku was still nearing the edge of SS3. Piccolo and Krillin would be of no help, and Goten and Trunks would just get in the way, even if they were taught the fusion technique (1) his father had learned about in the Otherworld. Gohan had never cared to learn about fusion, as he had developed this notion that sharing your abilities with others was not a good thing. If someone had to learn about your abilities, better they be on the receiving end of them than on the sidelines. Now, seeing as the Z-senshi were on the sidelines, he couldn't really follow this policy, but oh well. Gohan had many more abilities up his sleeve. More than a few of them were included in his worst-case-scenario plan, and hopefully they would help in the attack against Kid Majin Buu.

Kid Buu turned to them with its red eyes gleaming fanatically, the black-colored whites of its eyes looking unnatural in the combination with the red irises and the big black pupils. The sight of the eyes was creepy, enough that Trunks and Goten were both hiding behind Gohan. Well, Trunks wasn't hiding, he was merely using Gohan as a way to conserve his energy to fight this evil monster later. Yeah, that was it. If Trunks ever fought this evil monster later. Gohan was pretty strong, but not as strong as his dad, although Gohan did seem to know a lot more stuff than his dad did. Trunks brushed off the thought almost immediately, but it did pester him again and again for more than a few days afterward.

Kid Buu stood watching them, its funny eyes roving over them as it tried to choose someone to toy with. The Kaioshin was almost missed, but Kid Buu suddenly returned to him almost immediately. A wide grin stretched across its face again and it uttered a savage chattering cry, no doubt a sign of recognition. What was recognition for Kid Buu was doom for the Supreme Kaio, and as Kid Buu launched itself in the air at its chosen playmate, the Supreme Kaio quailed. Kid Buu could almost taste the fun it'd have with the puny and pompous man-creature that was present during the time with his old master, Bibidi. Not that Kid Buu considered the arrogant wizard his master. No siree, not him. No one was the master of Kid Buu, no one! Not even—

And _smack_ went the monster, as Kid Buu slammed into something tall and hard, and sprawled back on the floor. The tall and hard something (who turned out to be a walking sunburn by the way) also fell backwards from the impact, but Kid Buu didn't get the chance to resume its pursuit of play-revenge. It was too busy struggling in the midst of a blue-green bubble, which had suddenly sprung from the wall and looped around him. A purple square and a red triangle soon followed, three barriers that had served one purpose and was now fighting serve another.

Goten suddenly clutched his head as a searing pain shot across it. he doubled up and started whimpering as the pain increased. He sensed someone leaning over him, shaking him, talking, but Goten couldn't do anything to tell them about the pain in his head. He couldn't even think right now, except for the pain, the pain, _the_ _pain_ in his head. he wished, a detached part of him not dealing with _the pain_ wished, that Gohan was here. Of course, Gohan was only a few steps away, but Goten's aloof part wished he was _here_. And suddenly he was. Gohan entered Goten's head, and wrapped warm arms around the child's consciousness. Goten, finding relief in those strong arms, turned and buried him fully in them, allowing Gohan to shield him from _the pain_.

Gohan hugged his little brother, both physically and mentally, as Majin Buu attacked their barrier, needing to get out. He fought back while at the same time diverting the barrier's connection to Goten to himself. It took time, but finally he had all of it, and all the pain was focused on him, not Goten. Gohan released Goten as his headache came back tenfold, the result of Majin Buu's frantic attempts to escape the trap it found itself enclosed in. Gohan closed his eyes, composed himself (a major feat with that headache), then attacked Kid Buu with all of his mind. Kid Buu was taken aback with the ferocity of the sudden comeback attack, and it fell back against the barrier. Gohan seized a hold on his barrier and flung it out of Babidi's ship, cargo and all. He had to break through Shin and Kibito's barriers to do it, but the extra effort was nothing to him, even with his severely weakened mental powers.

The barrier broke through the ceiling of all four floors of Babidi's ship, then flew into the blue sky above. Gohan jerked on the connection he had with the barrier, and the circle fell apart, returning to Gohan faster than the eye could see and replenishing some of his ki magic levels. But it wasn't ki magic Gohan needed to restock on. He was running on the last of his mental reserves just from defending Goten from Kid Buu and from throwing his barrier into the sky. If something didn't come along that had major mental powers, or something along the lines of that, Gohan was going to be out of the running against Kid Buu, and the battle hadn't even started. Well, it started, but this was just a warmup. Gohan needed help, and soon, or else he was going to have to go on autopilot like during the Cell Games. We all saw what happened there. No wonder Gohan had reservations about that. Still, it was rapidly becoming the only choice Gohan had in order to reboot, refocus, and re-kick butt.

But for now, no mental fighting. Kid Buu was a tough opponent mentally. Must be the totally childish psychology all versions of Majin Buu followed.

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Gabrielle needed to hurry. She knew that in following her destiny, she'd never get to see her friends again, but even that fact could not get the psychic to turn back. She'd long since passed the point of no return when it came to her psychic abilities. This had just been another stop on the line for her to the end, and now she need to get up on her feet and move. Which was what she was doing. And quite marvelously, the authoress will add. After all, a girl riding a specially customized motorcycle that was almost as fast as lightning did count as moving, no? Still, Gabrielle wasn't going fast enough. She needed more speed!

Gabrielle revved the engine of her 'cycle and shot off again. She was going to make it.

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Gohan watched as Piccolo, Krillin, Goten, and Trunks got as comfortable as they could on a pile of rocks that was out of the way. It was close enough to the ground, the pile, that even if Vegeta were sent plunging to the ground, as now (sounds of a body digging a three-decameter trench in the ground are heard), it still wasn't in the way. In fact, Vegeta only missed it by three meters. Not very good aim, eh, Kid Buu? Of course, Goku, in the highest level of SS2, following in the exact same trajectory and plowing along the exact same trench that Vegeta had plowed when he landed can't really be the answer to that question.

Vegeta and Goku were both fighting Kid Buu at their maximums. Yet the Majin was not duly affected by the strength of his two opponents; he was having only slight trouble, about 40 of the trouble needed to bring him down. Gohan helped out with a few Kamehamehas when the Majin was clear, but he was holding back so as no tot waste too much energy. He would need a lot for when his worst-case-scenario plan, a.k.a. Operation Chew Bubblegum, was implemented, and he really should be getting on with that, come to think of it.

Acting upon that thought, Gohan withdrew from the field of battle, flying away far enough that Kid Buu wouldn't be able to kill him before he completed his transformations, and also so that he wouldn't hurt anybody with the waves he was about to through off. And of course, where no one could see what he was doing, the paranoid, and dead, teenager.

His destination chosen, Gohan took a deep breath. It was time to begin.

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A/n: And so ends another chapter…

Not.

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First, Gohan made sure he was limber. He wasn't stiff anywhere, but his left hand did need some tending to from sucking out the energy from Buu's egg. At a single thought, his fingers were as good as new as a forest-green ki circle glinted briefly and disappeared. Now there was no pain in that area. Gohan also re-straightened his clothes so that none of them would come in the way of his concentration here, or against Buu. It would do anyone little good if Gohan got caught in, say, a non-existent bramble of thorns and couldn't get out of it because of his clothes. Silly, maybe, but one could never tell (Paranoia alert! Run for your lives!)

Next, Gohan examined the state of affairs going on in his mental department. His powers were slowly building back up again, but were too slow for Gohan to prepare them for Buu. However, the demi-Saiyan, his face grim, decided to do his other preparations and come back later to see if his powers would be any help then.

Closing his eyes, Gohan silently reached deep into himself. He found his core, split into half ki magic and half regular ki. Both reserves were huge, although his ki magic wasn't as large as his regular energy. Oh well. He normally just changed regular ki into magic when he needed to, anyway. No biggee.

His ki magic was willing and ready to rumble. It was always like this when Gohan connected to his core, which was pretty much most of the time. It was even enthusiastic when Gohan _wasn't_ using it, a fact that Gohan was sometimes hard-pressed to control, especially when he was feeling strong emotions. Ki magic was directly linked to feelings, as was ki, but even more so. If Gohan was sad, his magic took a drop. If he was angry, his magic became wild, spiky, and almost impossible to control. If Gohan was panicking, which only ever happened with Goten, then the ki magic fluctuated wildly. But if Gohan was feeling the strongest emotion of all—love—(usually in the form of seeing his little brother happy, content, or generally joyful), then, his ki magic was at the mightiest level of all, as it was now.

For Gohan was fighting not only just for the world of Earth, his home planet. He wasn't just fighting because Kid Buu was evil (although that certainly was a factor), and because the people of the Earth would owe him yet another one for their lives. He was doing it for his family: his mother, his father, Bulma, Trunks, Piccolo, Krillin, et cetera. He was doing it for Goten, for the simple fact that he loved Goten, and Goten loved him.

His ki, regular and magic, surged up several notches. A ki-dampening barrier shot up around Gohan, blocking out his ki as it had once done for Vegeta. Now Kid Buu would not be able to sense its strongest opponent's ki levels until Gohan was ready.

With a roar, Gohan let go of his ki. It bounded free of his restraints and climbed rapidly up, up, up on the power scale, rising up past Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan Two, through the levels of Super Saiyan Three, to top off at the highest Super Saiyan Three could get to. His aura flickered cheerfully at anybody able to see through the translucent green shield, while lightning performed a celebratory war dance all over Gohan's body. Gold hair ran in a train of spikes all the way down to Gohan's ankles; Gohan retrieved three extra-super-jumbo ponytail holders and tied up all of the hair into a manageable, if spiky, ponytail (Imagine how hot Gohan's looking about now, ignoring that dratted Neanderthal forehead).

However, unbeknownst to Gohan, instead of making him seem girly with that ponytail, he looked more like a samurai warrior, enhanced by the gleaming sword strapped across his back, the hilt wrapped skillfully with leather for a good grip. His forehead bulged out, his eyebrows disappeared, and his eyes turned a mild, if unnatural, light blue. His facial features sharpened as well, his countenance becoming more defined, with a deceptively mild-mannered look spreading across it.

None of this was seen or heard, as Gohan was too far away, or felt, as he was behind a ki-hiding circle. Gohan had planned for all of this, and only forged ahead with the rest.

His heart, which had already supplied some images and feelings of his family, now gave more. Fear of what would happen if his family died, anger if someone ever thought of killing or harming them. Devastation, hatred, despair, hope, love, and joy. The memories flowed, as did the feelings, and his ki kept pumping away at that SS3 limit, not even draining Gohan of all of his energy. Gohan had long since gotten used to the drain SS3 had on one's ki, and had even found a way to recycle his ki so that there wasn't as much of a drain. Since he was dead, though, the drain of SS3 affected him less than it did a live person. Dead people didn't need to eat, but those who are alive do. So there was that as well.

After the last memory involving Cell attacking Mirai Trunks, Gohan was all beefed up and ready to go physically, ki and ki-magically, and emotionally. However, he still needed help mentally, so he reached the next step in his plan with an almost grateful sigh. The abilities that were about to come would probably be hard to get, but he'd return them when he was done. They probably actually really wouldn't be enough, but better having not enough than having none at all.

He put his hands together in his ki magic position, but he didn't call on his magic. Instead he called on the Kaios, the rules of the four quadrants. First was the North Kaio, who immediately gave his powers to Gohan. He had known all along about Majin Buu (after some coaxing out of a reluctant Gohan), and even of the part he'd play in its defeat. But he'd absolutely refused to talk to the other Kaios. He'd even cracked a not-so-funny joke about his colleagues, which Gohan had chosen to ignore. Gohan gave a cursory thanks to the North Kaio and jumped to the South Kaio, whom he estimated would be the easiest of the less known Kaios to convince. He berated himself for not "making friends" with the other Kaios earlier before this battle, so that he wouldn't have so much trouble with them now. He would have to fix that after this battle was handled. Casually of course, and gradually, so that the Kaios would drop their guards after a while.

That'd be easy.

The South Kaio was indeed easy to convince, especially with the barrage of memories and information Gohan threw at him for added effect. A shaky South Kaio promised to contact the others and show them what Gohan had, so that he would not have as much trouble from either of them. Gohan told him that Northie had already been told, a relief to South. He didn't have to deal with the northerner's corny jokes after all.

East Kaio was a bit fussy about having to give up her powers temporarily, but she did so eventually, "if only for the sake of protecting the universe against that horrid little brat, especially in his true form. Make sure you beat him for us, or you'll have me to deal with!" East Kaio then abruptly switched him over to West Kaio. He was a _trifle_ unwilling to lend his powers to one of his rival's warriors, but he did indeed do so for the same reason and the same threat (involving Pikkon, not West Kaio, however, likkle coward. WK: HEY! Who are you calling a little coward?!) as East Kaio did. He was the longest to convince, and by the time Gohan had his powers, he could sense that Kid Buu was beginning to beat Goku and Vegeta around a bit more. Thankfully, though, it hadn't tried to absorb them yet, so the Earth was still safe. Still, Gohan needed to hurry.

* * *

(1) GOTENKS, GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!! 

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Translations:

Kaioshin: Supreme Kaio

Kaio: god, ruler of a quadrant

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A/n: Whew! Finally, that's over with. Spirit Week is tiring! Yes, we have a whole week of spirit at our school… Sophomores are currently tied with the juniors, and way behind the seniors. Gosh DANG it! We need to win!!! Oh well. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chappie! I _did_ find my notebook halfway through writing this chapter, so the a/n up at the top is kind of useless. I didn't feel like switching it around, though, so deal with it! /Sticks tongue out/ Ny-ah!

I'm working on my C2 archive for Fruits Basket right now, which is weird, since I'm not even halfway through the manga series right now and have never seen the anime. Bad me. Oh well. Can't help that I like FB so much, especially Kyo-kun. How come it's always that I fall for the loner boys who have an attitude? Does that remind of a certain someone, a VA delinquent, around here? Hmm? ;D Oh well.

I'm busy with my homework and such, so much that my creative writing skills have to pushed to the side to cope with World History, Chemistry, Latin II, my two math classes, and English. Joy. I just _looove_ my school. It's a wonder that I even had the inspiration to write this chapter and update it. Bow to me. ;D

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And finally, my reviewers!

DBZ Chick1: You're welcome for the chap! I told ya I'd dedicate one to ya!! /Bows/

gaul1: Hey, you're back! YAY!! Thanks for the double reviews. Me likey. :D

SS2 Megami-sama: 4 stories. OK… WHAT?!?! You're halfway thru #3 but haven't finished #2 yet?!?! Strange… MUSES, GET TO WORK!!

Nice email address. Get a membership with so I can visit ya!!

YAY!! Partners is UP!! YAY! I still need the site though. It didn't show up in your **Kakkhan** review. I'll email it for you and then expect MAJOR reviews from me!! YAY! FUN TIME!!

New Dye: Oh goodie! More questions! Me likey.

1a) Already answered.

1b) Already answered.

1c) /Blinks/ Umm, I don't think it's in the cards for K. Buu to absorb anyone right now… /Thinks/

2) Not tellin'. I think this question will be answered either next chapter or the one after next…

3) /Blinks again, this time innocently/

4a) Well, yeah, they are supreme gods, and supreme gods know almost no bounds. Thankfully they've met Gohan…

4b) Yup.

4c) I guess. Ask them.

4d) Good idea. Thanx.

5) Contrary to popular opinion, Shin and Kibito can do _something_, and both of them are very strong with ki magic. Like. But yeah, it was weird. Maybe Gohan just wanted them out of the way or something. Ask him.

6) We shall see.

7) Ask him. Mind you, with that training Gohan's been doing and keeping watch over Goten and Trunks, I don't think he really had any spare time. Heh.

I updated! Thank you! Lemme ask: Do you have a list of questions on actual paper waiting to be written in the review? Or do you think them out when writing the actual review. Either way, I admire your clear thinking skills. Those are really good questions! /Bows/

Marshmellow13Dragon: A reviewer from ITALY!! KEWL!!

MB emitting pink clouds 'cuz he be going KABOOM?! Nice idea, but didn't exactly work, did it? Muahaha…

Too bad, K. Buu is here! Save yourself! Ruuuun!!

To Sarki: I'll review your story! Just show me where! … Yes, the three-girl ninja squad (me, you, and **simba-rulz**) got 'em all! WHOO HOO!!

I updated!

simba-rulz: YAY! I disturbed you, I disturbed you HA-HA! It's very hard to creep you out, so I consider chap. 25 a major achievement in writing. /Grinz evilly/

Haha! Who says Gohan won't get hurt? Or die again and fade into eternal oblivion? (The last part isn't going to happen, don't worry. I have too much planned for him. Muahaha…) You don't know my real name or where I live, so ha! Can't hunt me down, can't hunt me down!! Ny-ah!

Anyway, what's this about robbing me of my things?! Whatever for?!

OK! Me gonsa visit now!

Wiggle-Chicken: Nice name. Look forward to your reviews! Don't lose this story again, I beg you! OK!?!

YAY! My words are enhancing someone else's vocabulary! YES!! That's why I have them, 'cuz I love big words and weird meanings. I don't look them up though. I just use my thesaurus, which is bad, very bad. Oh well.

Thanks for reviewing! I love reviews! I need them! MORE! Cya!

Briememory: WHAT?!?! I gave away the plot?! Oh, that. Hey! Remember, I changed the plot around, so you never know…

Haha! That's exactly what I wanted to do, annoy you! I just felt mean, so… /Shrugs/ But hey! Ya got your chap! I'm glad last chap made ya laugh. That's what I aim for! Heehee!

Marshmellow13Dragon: Again! No, they are NOT inside MB. I don't know where THAT came from. LOL.

Italian DBZ? KEWL!! Can I watch?

To Sarki: Be nice.

Tiara Shin: Hey, nice name change! I waz confused 4 a moment, but your review was familiar, so that helped. Heh.

My best cliffie. /Polishes nails, admires them/ Thank you. /Bows glamorously/

I am going to leave you in the dark about next round. There's still hope…

But not much.

The Z-senshi thingy worked, except for Nerd Gohan from end of DBZ/DBGT & DBGT Videl. Whoo. Those delayed me MUCH. Whoa. /Whistles/ Ouch. AND DBGT Goten and his girlfriend, what's-her-name. Yecch. /Gags/ Pan was nice though. :D

I updated! Actual story this time! Wippee! What a joy. :D

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Thanks to **DBZ Chick1**, **gaul1 **(both times), **SS2 Megami-sama**, **New Dye**, **Marshmellow13Dragon** (both times & Sarki), **simba-rulz**, **Wiggle-Chicken** (all three times), **Briememory**, and **Tiara Shin** for their reviews! _Grazie!_

I'm going to start cutting down on the stuff included in on my chapters, for it makes the chaps too long with the technical stuff and with not enough story stuff. So starting next chapter, expect a majorly different chapter outlook, and hopefully a chapter that's just as long as usual. I'm also going to keep talking to my reviewers, but since there have been reports of stories out there getting deleted because of individual chapter reviews (called "script content". As if), so I'll be doing a general review response, not individual. Sorry! STUPID SITE!!

OK, I'm blabbing. Just review already!

Jam on!

TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

Updated 09.29.04


	28. Chapter the Twenty Seventh: Preparations

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Twenty-seventh

Disclaimer: /Recording of SP's voice snaps on/ **TheShadowPanther** in no way owns Dragonball Z. Not legally, not illegally (darn it), not physically, not mentally, nor emotionally. In her imagination, she does, but then again, she is just one of the many few who do that very same thing. So she's gonna sigh and give it up, and she hopes that her readers will do the same thing in regards to her ever owning DBZ. Thank you. /Recording snaps off/

/Readers see SP stick tongue out at disappointed DBZ lawyers/

I also don't own the ideas I borrow. Since there are a lot of ideas that I borrow, from a lot of fics, I won't list them here, but if you spot an idea that you think is borrowed, it probably is, and therefore I don't own it. No reports of plagiarism shall come from this corner, thank you very much. Hm!

A/n: Heheh... I like my disclaimer for this chapter. It's fun to think up a new one every chapter. Heehee...

Aline: You're weird, SP. 

SP: Thank you. :D

Aline: /Looks at authoress oddly/ Yeah... /Suddenly strikes, leaves/

SP: DARN IT, ALI— Ooh, that could be good... Heheh... /Starts typing next chapter/

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Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_...West Kaio was the longest to convince, and by the time Gohan had his powers, he could sense that Kid Buu was beginning to beat Goku and Vegeta around a bit more. Thankfully, though, it hadn't tried to absorb them yet, so the Earth was still safe. Still, Gohan needed to hurry.

* * *

_

The Longest First Tournament Day Ever, Still

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While he was still connected to the Otherworld, Gohan made a beeline for his friends; Osi, Ron, Fon, Lon, and Ton, and Pikkon, Ostion (?), Barklus (the dog warrior from the North Quadrant, anybody know his real name?), and the newest addition to the ranks, Qui-klan, whom was a member of the East Quadrant and had the amazing speed powers that went with that Quadrant. Osi and Ron both contributed powers of accuracy, of hitting his opponent straight on the mark. Ron also lent his gift of calmness through anything. Ton bestowed inner strength, the ability to stand up for himself (As if Gohan really needed that...) and for others. Lon was a laid-back person, and the unhurried philosophy was evident in the gift he gave Gohan, of the ability to take one step at a time, not rushing to everything as young people such as Gohan were wont to do.

Fon, the leader of the three alien Stooges, knew that Gohan did not need any leadership advice. But he did give Gohan the ability to work with others and to command them when he was in charge, instead of almost always flying solo and working behind the scenes, again as Gohan was wont to do. Fon also gave Gohan the ability to listen to the people "under" him, as if there would be anyone who would be. For added effect, in case Gohan tried to return Fon's gifts, he placed a rune of permanence (1) on both of them, so that the ability to take charge and to listen would remain forever with Gohan. As far as Fon was concerned, the kid needed them. They were going to serve him handily in the future. Look how well they'd served Fon while he and his brothers had been alive. They'd granted them many more years of life than without them; almost 50.

To the race the On trio belonged to, forty-five years of age was old. It wasn't ancient; some Shakakayans had lived to be fifty. The oldest age record for the Shakakayans was fifty-seven; so far no Shakakayans were even close to breaking that record. It'd always been this way for the Shakakayans to live a span of twenty-four years on average and then die, especially since the Shakakayans were almost always fighting wars. Not among themselves, they were too cultured for that (SP: Hmpf! /Sniffs snottily/), but certainly against other races. There were a lot of alien races on the giant planet of Byretinze, and almost all of them wanted to dominate the world. Not much choice, now is there?

But, the authoress digresses. It had served Fon, Lon, and Ton extremely well, and now it was time for them to pass it on. Long past time; they'd been dead for nearly 130 years (Readers:/Gape, face-fault/ SP: /Rolling on the floor laughing/).

Pikkon gave unto Gohan the ability to think under pressure, which completed the package Ron had started to give him. Ostion parted with the power to stay focused on the goal, which only enhanced Gohan's own capability of the same thing. Barklus donated the talent of an animalistic mind, which was simple, didn't go into overdrive like human or Saiyan minds did, and sorted through more information than either mind did. Basically, both humans and Saiyans tended to ignore information received by the senses that wasn't relevant to their current situation, while animals took in all information, relevant or not. It was quite a gift, and Gohan was appreciative of it.

Qui-klan, as promised, bequeathed his speed powers. These speed powers did not require the use of ki or ki magic, which Gohan was quite keen on. He wouldn't have to use his mental powers, either, which were still developing as quickly as a snail trying to escape being cooked into escargot, nor would he have to use Kaio Transmission to get back to Majin Buu. These speed powers were truly a must have during this time. Gohan let Qui-klan know exactly how much he treasured the contribution.

Leaving behind a mentally blushing Qui-klan, Gohan came down to Earth from Otherworld. He found his sword, Arikeru, humming and vibrating with such ferocity that Gohan was wide-eyed at its eagerness. But then Arikeru seemed to soften a bit, and got quieter as Gohan reached for it. Just when Gohan's hand grasped the hilt, Arikeru buzzed again, louder, and Gohan had to let go of his sword so as not to get his hand buzzed off. Gohan hated getting his hand buzzed off.

With a ring of steel on steel, Arikeru slid smoothly out of its sheath. It rose silently into the air within the barrier, then resumed buzzing and vibrating until Gohan winced with the noise in his new re-animalized senses. He closed his eyes just as a flash of bright light swept over him, almost blinding him even through his eyelids. Gohan opened his eyes to see Arikeru rigid in the air, the air around the sword still trembling violently. If Gohan had had hair on the back of his neck that wasn't spiky, it would have been sticking straight up in the air at how weird his trusty sword Arikeru was acting. He had no idea what was going on with Arikeru, but suddenly he detected a strange-yet-familiar ki signature that he was sure he had not known before today. In fact...

Gohan looked down at the bottom of his barrier circle and saw a girl shooting along on a motorcycle. The girl had on the black helmet traditional of all but a few motorcyclists, but Gohan had no more trouble recognizing her. For she also had on a white tank top with the message "What're you looking at?" with black sweatpants that cascaded down to hide the combat boots she wore. The combat boots at this moment were proudly displayed upon the runners of the rumbling motorcycle, with sizzling suns etched onto the boots that Gohan had not noticed before.

The helmet did not hide the identity of the girl from Gohan's Super Saiyan Three sharp eyes, but her purpose for being here was what baffled Gohan. That, and the fact that Arikeru rumbled mightier and mightier with every meter the girl came closer. Finally Arikeru was at its deepest pitch, and the girl came closer and closer. At last she was three kilometers away from Gohan when she slowed the motorcycle down and stopped it. She turned the engine of the vehicle off and looked silently up at Gohan.

With a sharp boom, Gohan's attention was drawn to Arikeru again. Now it seemed to be addressing him, telling him to do something. What, Gohan didn't know. He did know that it was important, and that he needed the information.

Gohan reached out for the sword, and was both alarmed and relieved when Arikeru started drifting to the outstretched limb. He was alarmed because, well, why not? Arikeru had been acting abnormally strange in the last few minutes. What supernatural thing, if any, was going to happen next? At the same time, Gohan was relieved, for he had never been parted from Arikeru forcefully in the near six years they'd been partners. And Arikeru was finally returning to normal, at least as normal as a thundering sword coming back to its wielder of its own energy was, anyway.

However, when Gohan's fingers touched the leather-bound hilt of the sword, a deep shock ran through him. The demi-Saiyan shuddered with the shock, but even so, Arikeru was still trying to tell him something, so Gohan forced himself to relax and to listen.

**_...Use me..._**

Gohan's eyes widened as a deep ethereal voice clanged in his head. It reminded him of the sound Arikeru made when Gohan sheathed or unsheathed it, and when the Osi siblings' swords clanged against it. He suddenly understood that this was the voice of Arikeru itself, the spirit within the named sword, and that it was communicating with him.

**_...Use me..._**

Gohan tried, but he couldn't quite understand what the spirit of Arikeru wanted him to do. Arikeru's voice rang in between his ears again, reiterating a third time its earlier message.

**_...Use me well, Saiyan-jin warrior..._**

The puzzle clicked. Gohan gripped the sword and hefted it high above his head, almost piercing through the top of his barrier globe, he held it so high. Gohan ignored this and shouted at the top of his lungs, so that Krito, the ruler of the Takao-jin (2) divine spirits, could hear.

"Arikeru, sword of Likon, warrior of the mist, lend me your strength!" came the words, the necessary information supplied by Arikeru as Gohan spoke. Power flooded into him from Arikeru, the spirit unbound from its corporeal form. The spirit jumped from the sword into Gohan, and information unknown to anyone for generations swept through his mind, information that was understood in a brief moment of clarity and then lost to him almost forever. The knowledge would surface again when Gohan would need it, and then he would understand it, but if he tried to use the information when he did not need it, he would not be able to even make out any order.

All of this Gohan saw as clearly as the gold of his hair, which was also tipped at the end with a steel grayish color, an obvious side-effect of the sword spirit's fusion with Gohan's own spirit. Gohan sighed at how old he must look. Then Arikeru's spirit nudged him, and he refocused on the task at hand.

The sea of knowledge he'd just been overwhelmed with had faded away, leaving behind only a bright river of knowledge that was centered around one topic: the psychic line of the O' Haras.

Gohan waded through the data in the river, collecting everything of importance (mainly what Arikeru pointed out to him), analyzed the facts he had, then pulled himself out of his trance.

* * *

Gabrielle gazed up at the boy within the glowing forest-green orb. He seemed to be in a trance at the moment, which was understandable considering what he'd just been through (SP: Heck yeah! Hello! A spirit fusion can do that to you! Like!). He seemed older, more mature, more ethereal than he had when he'd been facing the sword. He still had his golden hair, but there was gray in it, from what Gabrielle could see through the green spheroid he was encased in. Gabrielle wondered if it was part of her destiny to break the boy, no, man, out from the shell he was in. However, Berkley had said to trust her instincts in following her destiny, and Gabrielle wasn't feeling anything about having to break someone out of something. So she would bide her time.

She saw, with a widening of her eyes, the boy—_man_, she corrected herself again. She had to think of him as a man. Why, she admitted she didn't know. but there was just an insistent certainty that she call this person a man, not a boy, even though the person looked a little young in terms of age to be called a man. But Gabrielle knew one thing: that it wasn't your age that determined if you were an adult or not. It was your attitude and your maturity level that did, and this guy had humongous quantities of both qualities, so he hardly counted as a boy.

He opened his eyes, which were a dark blue-grey that looked unnatural on him, and looked straight at Gabrielle. The psychic felt the breaths freeze in her lungs as the blue-grey eyes pierced straight through her, seeming to know everything about her the instant they landed on her. This was a weird feeling for Gabrielle, for it normally was she who did this to others, not others to her. She could now understand why others felt unnerved by her gift of knowledge. It was creepy being unveiled to someone whom you didn't know and didn't especially want to know after the display. Yet Gabrielle stood her ground, wincing under the intensity of the man's gaze, and the moment was soon over.

"Who are you, and why are you here?" the boy/man's asked, his voice no deeper than the first time Gabrielle had heard it, but holding infinitely more wisdom than ever before in its tone. Gabrielle mentally gulped at the unemotion also present in that tone, then answered.

* * *

He turned to her, the girl having by now taken off her helmet to display her bleached-brown-and-black hair. He saw that she was indeed the last psychic of the O' Hara line, and that she had come to fulfill her destiny. What destiny that was, Gohan still did not know. Arikeru had not had the information regarding the destiny of the last psychic child, only that she was immensely important to the defeat of Majin Buu, so important that Kid Buu could not be defeated without her.

Gohan found sense in that information. According to his research (Aha! Gohan's been doing his homework after all!) on Kid Buu, the little tyke of gum was almost invincible to all ki attacks of any magnitude from a small group of people with far less strength than he had. However, the research had also told him that the defeat of Majin Buu lay in the form of an attack of many people with different powers. Maybe this psychic girl (whose name was not known yet) was one of those people.

He withdrew from his examination of her and asked in a voice that was his and yet not his (another side effect from the spirit fusion, he assumed),

"Who are you, and why are here?"

The psychic made a gesture that Gohan correctly interpreted as mentally gulping, then opened her mouth to reply.

"My name is Gabrielle Fiolena O' Hara, the last of the psychic O' Haras, and the Keeper of the Darkness for Goodness. I am here to fulfill my destiny, to save the world through a spirit fusion from a monster named Majin Buu, and to remain forever bound to the spirit I am fused with. I'm assuming that you are the warrior I am fated to spiritually fuse with. Do you agree?" (SP: Pompous girl! Must be her nervousness.)

Gohan's head was whirling. The Keeper of the Darkness for Goodness? Wasn't that person a high-ranking official involved in the workings of Lady Fate up there? Just what was She planning in that workshop of Hers?! She must have a serious grudge against Kid Buu to involve a latent-power psychic such as Gabrielle employed as a Keeper in his defeat. Ouch. (SP: Hehehe)

Gabrielle seemed to sense that Gohan was undecided, even in a little bit of shock. She took control of the conversation again and went on to say, "If we spirit-fuse, I will stay with you forever for as long as you, er, exist, as I am presuming that you are already dead." At this she nodded at Gohan's halo. Gohan nodded himself, a smirk on his face, a gesture Gabrielle was quick to return with one of her own.

"I will also lend my powers to you to use whenever you wish for them," she continued, the smirk fading from her face. "You could be a psychic if you wanted to, take my place in the world of the psychic arts, know everything about everyone you meet, and know what's going to happen in the next second before that second happens." Gabrielle said the last part softly, her eyes downcast, as if knowing the future a second before it happens wasn't exactly a desirable gift to have. Gohan knew that it wasn't, that future knowledge could be demanding, even painful. Just ask Baba after one of her fortune-telling spiels.

Gohan said, bringing Gabrielle's face back up to him (SP: Have you noticed that Gohan has been in SS3 this whole time? Gotta speed up the process so Gohan can relax. Typetypetypetypetypetypetype!!). "Nah, I don't think so. Besides, it's hard enough being an empath now, what with Buu being so evil I had to shut down my wave senses just to get away from them."

A look of surprise ran over Gabrielle's face. "You have... psychic powers too?" She asked, her voice a little shaky.

"Not very many. I'm not a very strong empath, but I can attack other people's minds, cross into them, or defend my brother's or my mind from intruders. Oh, and I have a limited telepathy base, as well as dimensional teleportation," Gohan replied, shrugging a shoulder.

Gabrielle's expression was one of pure shock as she listened to Gohan list off his powers. No wonder she hadn't been able to read anything on this guy! He was a mind empath! Mind empaths were very rare, and usually developed at a very late age. Considering this guy was dead, it was very likely that, like most potential mind empaths, he'd died at an early age (SP: Does eleven years old count as an early age? :D). In fact, Gabrielle was certain that this man's powers had developed _after_ he'd died. That kind of thing was even rarer, but it was known to happen. Of course, spirits from the Otherworld with mental empathy powers didn't normally come visiting to the Living World, but she knew this one was the exception to the rule (SP: Mm-hmm. Haha!).

Still, Gabrielle was pleased that Gohan didn't want to be more psychic than he already was. Too many psychics wanted more powers, more fame, more everything, than what they already had, and therefore were either disgraced, burnt out, or dead because of their fame and glory hunt. Gabrielle certainly wasn't a fortune seeker, and now she'd found another one. This was going to work.

However, they were running out of time, and she need to convince Gohan to spirit-fuse with her. She knew that he would do it if and when they needed to, as they certainly did now, but she would rather that he do the fusion voluntarily than forcefully. She normally didn't care about whether people wanted to do something psychic or not, but in Gohan's case she was feeling quite different. She didn't know if it was because Gohan was also psychic, or if it was something else. Whatever the case, she needed to work quickly.

"Hey," said she, redirecting Gohan's attention to herself. "In order to balance the light of something, and I see a lot of light from you," she continued, pointing at the fiery aura still emanating from him, "there has to be darkness. I'm that darkness. You're the light. Your psychic powers, and any other powers that you have, if any, would be a lot easier to control and regulate with me along for the ride. Just think about it. What is a really annoying power that you try and try and try to control, but it never really listens to you? I could help to control that power. I'm the darkness, and darkness balances the light. Sure, I have my problems, but I can overcome them. You're a mind empath, and mind empaths have a lot more powers and a lot more problems than a minor psychic like me. Just, just think about it, okay?"

Gabrielle winced. She had all but begged that last part. She hated sounding whiny, sounding desperate, but she was desperate, in this case. She was desperate to fuse with a boy/man she didn't know, whom had just fused with a sword, and whose name she didn't even know. Gabrielle had never thought her life would come down to this, but then again, her boss Fate was known for making people do what they'd never thought they'd do. She was going to have to resign from the psychic job the next time she was reincarnated, whenever that was.

While Gabrielle was entertaining herself with her less-than-morbid imagination, Gohan was thinking heavily about her words thus far. He did have an annoying power that was absolutely bratty to him, the power of telepathy. Telepathy would not listen to him, sometimes making him listen in on conversations that he mostly didn't want to hear (mostly about him and another prank he'd played), and sometimes not letting him listen when he wanted to. Sometimes it cooperated with him, but those times were only when he was around his brother, Trunks, or when the time was urgent, like getting out of a second-death-in-a-row situation. And Gohan had had plenty of those (twice is too many, let him tell ya) in his deathtime.

Still, he didn't want to share his body with someone he didn't know beforehand. With Arikeru, it was okay, because he knew Arikeru like the back of his hand. _He didn't know Gabrielle_. What was Gabrielle's life like before they both came to be here? What were her interests? Her non-interests? Et cetera? All of those trivial things were what made up a person, and Gohan knew none of those about Gabrielle. Heck, he didn't even know if she knew his name. Nevertheless, Kid Buu was seriously beating his dad up now, and if he didn't make a decision quickly, the battle would be over.

The psychic's voice drifted up to him again, sealing his decision for the world. "You're a tough nut to crack. Okay, how about this? I'll be the female counterpart of your soul. You already have your sword to be your neutral counterpart, now you need a female to offset the nature-sentience of that sword. You need darkness to balance the light, and you need a female to balance a male and a sword. I'll be your sister-soul, your dead twin, your—"

Gohan cut Gabrielle off as the psychic struggled to find another analogy for the spirit fusion. "All right, all right already, you've convinced me. Sheesh, calm down," he said, causing a blinking Gabrielle to close her mouth. Gohan smirked at the surprised psychic before he continued, more seriously, "Now, I don't know you, and you don't know me, but we're going to have to do this spirit fusion if we want to defeat Majin Buu. Let's just get this over with, and we'll deal with our differences later. Okay?"

Gabrielle nodded, and took a slow breath. Gohan watched her amusedly, knowing that spirit fusions could always be undone, and Gabrielle would not have to spend the rest of Gohan's existence with him. That would quickly get boring. But for now, it was what they needed. Gohan also prepared himself, but it took him far less time, as he was already ready, just not for this, not quite.

He watched Gabrielle open her eyes again. He quirked an eyebrow at her, asking a silent question. The psychic nodded, taking another deep breath as Gohan stretched out a hand to her, his palm straight up, as if he were getting ready to fire a ki blast. He said, not as loud as for Arikeru, but loud enough,

"Gabrielle Fiolena O' Hara, last of the O' Hara psychics, lend me your powers!"

Gabrielle's eyes went wide and rolled as her body suddenly jerked, twisted, and shuddered. Gohan felt the power trip too, but not as much as Gabrielle did. He wasn't the one who was lifted into midair while her spirit was trying to free herself from her bindings to her body. He wasn't the one who had darkness streaming from her in waves, even if the darkness was coming toward him. He wasn't the one who screamed as the spirit finally fled the body, nor was he the spirit who flew to the barrier, passed through it entirely, as though it wasn't there, and struck Gohan. He was the one who was the recipient of the spirit fusion, and felt like he was being hammered by lightning over and over and over again. And over again.

Gohan's roar could be heard for kilometers around them, as Gabrielle's spirit battled to get in with him between him and Arikeru. Gohan tried to make it easy for Gabrielle, to soften the barriers in front of her and to tie the barriers back up after her, but it was hard. Suddenly Arikeru jumped in, ripping away the barriers for Gabrielle and leaving Gohan to get them back up. Gohan set to it with gusto, being so paranoid as to not like his defenses down at any time, even when they needed to be.

Arikeru slashed the last barrier, and with a burst of energy, Gabrielle was free. Gohan stiffened as energy spread through him. His mental powers skyrocketed at such a rate that Gohan actually felt woozy before Arikeru stabilized him enough to re-raise the last barrier. Then Gohan sat back and let Gabrielle get settled. He was thankful that barriers did not need constant concentration, or it would have dissolved a long time ago. Gohan's concentration had been broken so many times in the last fifteen minutes; it was a miracle he still had his head screwed on straight. (Imagine what'd it be like if his head was backwards. LOL!)

It took some time, but soon Gohan, Gabrielle, and Arikeru were all settled and in harmony with each other. Gabrielle and Arikeru were hitting it off, exchanging info with each other and getting to know each other quite well. Gohan amusedly watched the spirits get comfortable with each other, then broke in when the time was right.

"All right, guys, now that we're settled and comfy, let's go defeat Majin Buu!" Gohan started to return to his consciousness, but Gabrielle sort of prevented him.

"Hey, wait! I still don't know you. I've gotten this far without knowing you, but I don't think I'm going to go any further. I know that time's really, really short, but things would be a lot more comfortable for us all if we took the seconds to know each other, know each other's weaknesses and strengths and..."

"Basically you're talking about our lives, aren't you? That's really what you mean, right, Gab?" Gohan said to Gabrielle. Gabrielle blinked at the nickname Gohan had just used, then blinked again as Gohan dragged her into his section of his mind. Gohan left her there to browse for herself, then went over to Gabrielle's section and immediately opened up her Memory Box. Gabrielle hesitated, thinking about the tone that Gohan had used when asking that question and the sardonic smirk he had sent her way. She had a feeling that she'd just personally offended Gohan, but seeing no reason as to why, she also unlocked Gohan's Memory Box.

A life of fighting, pain, loss, despair, hope, emptiness, determination, happiness, and more fighting later, Gabrielle sat back. She had long ago moved past the point where she was shocked and now only felt numb. She knew that once she got over her numbness, she would feel respect, sympathy, and even shame for her nosiness, but she wasn't to that point yet. She most definitely was not at that point yet.

"Done?" a voice behind her asked. Gohan moved into view, a mocking smirk on his face. Gabrielle just nodded and moved over back to her section. Gohan watched her go, his smirk dissolving in place of a concerned look.

"Are you okay, Gab?" he asked. He just now realized that his lifetime wasn't exactly a good thing to thrust upon cocky busybodies, and that he should have been a little more careful when dealing with strangers. Yet, Gabrielle's lifestyle had been similar to his, not so much fighting, or death, but certainly one in which much loss was known.

Friends had been taken away because of Gabrielle's psychic ability, her father had died (and he had been very close to Gabrielle too), her mother had totally ignored her, and her sister was perfectly normal: no psychic weirdness, no constant headaches, just a plain ordinary not-so-happy teenager, just like every others out there. Gabrielle had only had Videl, Sharpner, and Erasa to lean on, and none of them understood the fullest extent of the difficulties of Gabrielle's life. Once Gabrielle had realized that, she had started to pull away from her friends and her family, helping no one with her distance, least of all herself. It was quite sad, really, but perfectly human. Gohan felt he would have done the same if he were she.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just... need some thinking time," Gabrielle answered. She had a headache brewing, but she was feeling more like herself now.

"You sure?" Gohan asked. Gabrielle looked back at him, her headache receding to the back of her mind at the concerned look on Gohan's face. He looked so worried that Gabrielle just had to cheer him up.

"Hey, you're not going to go mushy on me, are you? Are you?" she joked. It was a weak joke, but it did make a small smile appear on Gohan's face. Gabrielle sighed and faced him directly. "Look, Gohan, I'm fine. Now let's just go and defeat Buu, and we'll deal with our differences later. Okay?" she demanded, rather than asked.

This time a bigger smile appeared on Gohan's face, but Gabrielle could see that he was still worried. Nevertheless, he turned away and returned to his own consciousness, leaving Gabrielle to wonder at and appreciate his concern.

The demi-Saiyan put aside his worries and focused instead on his newfound psychic powers. They were numerous in quantity and high in level, but with Gabrielle's steadying hand, Gohan had no difficulties in controlling them. He found that all of them were useful against Majin Buu, and coupled with Arikeru's information and penchant for finding an opponent's weaknesses, he saw that these powers were positively lethal to said monster. And with the other powers he was borrowing for this battle alone, Majin Buu was going down.

He checked up on the others as a final preparation for battle. Seeing that Gabrielle and Arikeru were ready, Gohan refocused back on his surroundings. His expression was grim, his gaze icy, and his hair in his face (SP: Wait, what?! What's going on here?! Aline: You tell me, you slacker. SP: /Glares/). Gohan merely ignored the double spikes hanging in front of his face, although those spikes had an odd black stripe running through each of them, along with the gray tip and the standard gold. Hey, it was go time, at long last. Finally. These preps had taken long enough.

Gohan withdrew and collected the ki barrier he'd been standing in for at least fifteen minutes (SP: What?! Only 15 minutes?! Ay yi yi...). He felt Kid Buu's ki signature abruptly stop in the middle of zooming speedily to the east, and knew that he had been spotted. It was go time.

Again.

"Let's kick some Majin Buu butt. This Kid needs a spanking once and for all," Gohan quipped. There were no chuckles or even groans at his bad pun on Kid Buu, although Gohan did feel a mental eye roll coming from Gabrielle's section of his mind. However, Gohan didn't pay any attention to it. Using Qui-klan's super speed powers, he was already on the move.

Son Gohan, Saiyan warrior, defender of Earth, and guardian angel of one Son Goten, was coming.

Woe to Majin Buu.

* * *

(1) Fon does not use ki magic, in case you are wondering. He does use a form of magic in the usage of runes, but not ki magic or real magic, like in Harry Potter.

(2) The Osi siblings come from the planet Takao, so Krito is the ruler of divine spirits on Takao.

* * *

A/n: Darn it! I wanted to get to the MB vs. G fight in this chapter, but noo! I had to write Gabrielle's induction, which took a long time!!! Bleagh!! Stupid inspiration strike! Grr...

Oh well! We'll get to it next chapter! :)

* * *

I'm a bit rushed right now, so I'm going to forgo the review responses for this chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, sorry I can't name you all. Know you have my eternal thanks and that you simply must review this chapter! Arigatou! /Bows/

So, Gohan's finally got all of the things he needs to defeat Kid Buu! Yay! But what's up with the spirit fusion he had to perform with both Arikeru and Gabrielle? Why did Gabrielle even show up if she knew that she was going to have to spirit fuse permanently with someone? Has Gabrielle's destiny been completed yet? Let's discover this, next chapter of **Vigilante Angel**!

Hasta la vista,

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 10.15.04_


	29. Chapter the Twenty Eighth: Defeat

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Twenty-eighth

Disclaimer: Neither **TheShadowPanther** nor **AASN** has a claim pertaining to the ownership of Dragonball Z or any of its related shows. The Muses of SP may or may not be the same Muses that used to bother Akira Toriyama when he was drawing both Dragonball and Dragonball Z, but Akira no longer has his Muses, which may or may not be SP's Muses. It is safe to assume that the Muses of SP are in no way connected to the former Muses of Akira Toriyama or the horrible Muses of FUNimation, but one does never know…

Basically, I don't own Dragonball Z.

Disclaimer Two: Same disclaimer for the ideas from other fic from last chapter (and the previous chapters before last) applies to this chapter, and will apply to all future chapters of this here novelette (Sure is turning into a novel, eh?). This disclaimer will not be mentioned again, save for "See Chapter the Twenty-seventh".

A/n: I have a note here from Aline. It basically says she's quit. And yet she's still a registered member of **AASN**, and **VA** is still going on. What could this mean?

Readers: …

SP: She's taking another vacation.

Readers: /Nod matter-of-factly/

SP: Yeah that's what I thought. Gonna go fish her out of the Caribbean again… Cya whenever and however!

Enjoy!

SP: PS, IT'S THE MAJIN BUU VS. GOHAN FIGHT!!! REJOICE!!! IT IS HERE AT LONG LAST!!! MUAHAHAHA!!

Ahem. /Coughs lightly/ Again, enjoy. AND REVIEW! /Glares/ (Although it's not much of a fight. Hehe)

* * *

Last time, on **Vigilante Angel**— 

_"Let's kick some Majin Buu butt. This Kid needs a spanking once and for all," Gohan quipped. There were no chuckles or even groans at his bad pun on Kid Buu, although Gohan did feel a mental eye roll coming from Gabrielle's section of his mind. However, Gohan didn't pay any attention to it. Using Qui-klan's super speed powers, he was already on the move. _

_Son Gohan, Saiyan warrior, defender of Earth, and guardian angel of one Son Goten, was coming. _

_Woe to Majin Buu.

* * *

_

Gohan got to the battlefield so fast that he almost lost his bearings. He didn't lose them enough that he didn't punch Majin Buu straight on in the face as Buu was preparing to kick off in Gohan's direction (meaning he did sucker-punch that darn Kid), but he did have to hesitate for a split second to regain those bearings (Whoa that's fast. Faster than Instant Transmission, that's so fast. Yikes.) after that, however, there was nothing to gain and everything to lose.

Gohan streaked after the Main and was soon beating it up into a dented pulp. Not a bloody pulp, since that Kid didn't have any blood running through it, but certainly a pulp, oh yes. Kid Buu had no chance to regain its own wits until it hit in an unlucky punch that knocked Gohan away for more than three seconds. In that period of time, Buu shot a pink ki ball at Gohan, who quickly deflected it and went at the Kid again.

Goku, who by now was only in his SS1 state, having lost far too much energy to be able to maintain the SS2 level, was expecting fists and feet in his stomach. He could make no move to prevent those fists and feet, for his body was wracked with too much pain to be able to move much. Goku tried to conquer that condemnable pain as quickly as possible, so that he could at least be semi-prepared for the flurry of pink bubblegum that was Kid Majin Buu.

However, when the expected attack did not come, after many, many seconds, Goku grew curious. He agonizingly cracked open one bleeding eyelid to see, but he couldn't see anything but dirt and the small rocks that had tumbled down after him as he fell through the earth. Goku shut the eye and instead used his ki reading abilities, choosing not to undergo any more pain than he absolutely needed to.

What he felt did cause him pain, however. Not pain in the head (as if Goku would ever get _that_) but pain from sitting up too sharply and too fast. The Saiyan ignored (with actual difficulty) the pain however, for the shocking sight he could now clearly see merited that at least.

Of course, since we (we being the authoress and the readers), well, I, are all-knowing, we know exactly what is going on. It's only the fight between Gohan (or rather Gohan, Gabrielle, Arikeru, etc.) and Kid Majin Buu (or rather… er…), nothing major. Let us look at how our favorite (and only) Saiyan Prince is doing.

Vegeta. Yes, Veggie-chan. He was doing a lot better than one other childish Saiyan, a fact that he will be quick to mention to anyone who is willing to listen (not us). Of course, he had attained SS3 by this time, and had even listened to a few (but not all) of Gohan's Tips for Extremely Late Bloomers (SP: **D**) to reduce the drain of SS3 on his energy levels. Thanks to the teen demi-Saiyan, Vegeta was able to not only reduce the damage to his ki reserves, but also to control the level a bit better than he would have without the… _help_… of that smug Kakkagaki. One just shudders at the mention of that word when used in connection with Vegeta. No good things can come of that usage.

But we stray far from the original path chosen for this chapter. Vegeta was faring a lot better, but he was still beaten up and bloody. He was in much less pain than Goku was, and Vegeta would deny that he was in any pain, but we're not going to listen to him, now are we? No! (**:D**) Anyway, yeah, Veggie-kun was a lot better, and he was also still in SS3, although it was only be a huge amount of sheer will and pride that he was still (that's Veg-head for ya). For he was at the end of his energy rope for SS3, and he knew that if that darn Buu threw him to the ground as hard as it had last time, Vegeta would not be able to keep it. Curse that ugly gaki of a monster! Why did it have to be so strong and he, the Prince of all Saiyans, so weak against it?

Quite suddenly, the proud Saiyan Prince was snapped out of his self-despising thoughts for something far more important. After all, it wasn't every day you saw, or rather felt, an immensely powerful and just as evil monster (and made of bubblegum too, yum!) just _slam_ into the packed earth right beside you, now was it? Especially when that same monster had just been tossing you and another strong warrior (though not as strong as you are) as if the two of you were plain and faded rag dolls? One can quite understand why Vegeta became… distracted.

Vegeta gaped wide-eyed (not like a fish, no, not quite like that) at the monster lying prone in the crater its body had dug for it, then looked skyward for the source of the action. He almost missed him, the source, and it took a while to identify the ki, as it was mixed with at least two other whole ki signatures and traces of many other, other energy signals. But once Vegeta disregarded this signature and threw away that signal, and then re-tracked the original signal down (as it was moving too fast for even him to see; at which one should wonder, "how do we have a chance?!") he became both shell- and skin-shocked beyond belief.

How could it be that it was the first Kakkagaki who was moving so fast that Vegeta couldn't keep track of him for more than a few seconds? How could it be that it was the first Kakkagaki—er—_Gohan_—was dealing so much damage to that darn Buu when he himself was helpless against it? For indeed, that was what the gaki was doing: he was doling out so much damage to the Buu monster and at speeds so incredible it was almost impossible to comprehend. Was this the actual fighting capability of the Kakkagaki? If so, how had he (Vegeta) not been able to sense this in him before?! But wait, what about those other weird ki signatures that were with that brat?!

Gohan himself was getting impatient. This was taking too long. He had to find an opportunity to properly vanquish Majin Buu quickly, or something else was going to happen, and Gohan did not want something else to happen at all.

Finally, he saw it. The perfect opportunity. He had just done a triple punch and flying kick combination that had literally flattened Buu, then as Buu sprung back up, sent it flying headfirst straight into the ground, right beside the brooding form of Vegeta. The end result was a prone Majin Buu, and that was exactly what Gohan needed as a break.

Floating still for the first time in the one whole minute since the real battle started, Gohan closed his eyes and firmly locked on Buu's ki. He felt Arikeru and Gabrielle come and join him in his section of their linked minds and appreciated their support. Focusing entirely on the job at hand, Gohan collected all of his powers and intermingled them, fusing them together so thoroughly that they became inseparable from each other, and unable to be taken apart until the purpose of these powers was fulfilled. Even then, Gohan would have a hard time separating them cleanly.

Anyway, Gohan used this thoroughly fused combination of powers and formed it into a ball. This took some time, as most of the powers were unused to being utilized this way, but with the psychic and sword spirit's help, he got it done. Opening his eyes, Gohan discovered that he was no longer covered in his shimmering dark area, but that had gone into his ki ball as well. Even all of Gohan's SS3 strength was in the globe, making Gohan revert back to his normal state, yet the orb was no bigger than an ordinary ki bomb commonly used by the Z-senshi.

The ki sphere itself was a wonder, for it flashed all the colors one could imagine, the rainbow colors, the metallic colors (gold, silver, etc), white, black, grey, brown, pink, ultraviolet, and so on. Every color one could imagine was in that ki ball, and all of them were representative of each individual power lent to one Son Gohan, guardian angel. Not everyone who saw the ki ball knew its significance as such, however. Vegeta didn't, although he could tell it was something major, Goku certainly couldn't, and the remaining Z-senshi were positively dumbfounded as well.

Except for Dende. The little Kami at the moment was outright gaping like an extremely startled Namekian turtle bass. Mr. Popo wasalso startled, but only at the sight of his not-so-new charge, not about any of the events going on, of which he had no knowledge. Dende, however, was in great awe and wonder at all the powers contained within that little ki ball of Gohan's. The young Namekian had never seen so many powers or such high quality ones in one place. It was a big wonder that these powers didn't start fighting against one another, but as Dende knew Gohan well, he didn't dwell much on that subject.

No, it was a wonder that Gohan even _got_ these many powers. He didn't know how many friends and or contacts Gohan had, but they were more apparently more than Dende had thought was possible. Otherworld must be a bigger place than he thought, for so many powers to be lurking around (not exactly, my dear Dende. Hehehe…). But the good thing about these powers was, they were all disastrous when not controlled properly, AND they were lethal to Majin Buu's structure. Mental structure, that is.

Gohan, still with his eyes closed, lifted the ball with all the collected powers combined. As if sensing that its destiny was near, the orb levitated a bit higher in his hand, almost as if it were eager to destroy Kid Majin Buu on its own. Gohan ignored this and re-found his lock on Majin Buu's ki. Using that lock, with his mental empathy powers, the demi-Saiyan formed a picture within his head that looked similar to a Doppler radar picture, but was in a bit more color. Using both this picture and his instincts, Gohan took the orb between both hands and, with a tremendous surge, slung it down at the struggling form of Majin Buu.

Buu pulled its head free of the hole it had created just in time to turn around for a face full of a small but highly compact ball of powers. Gohan made the bomb ignite when it touched Buu's head, thus allowing all the powers to go free. The powers needed a being to contain them, however, and as Buu was the nearest one around, they all shot into it.

Now, this might seem like a very risky thing to do, but these powers (as said over and over again before) in combination with each other were very lethal to someone, or something, whom did not have the necessary will power needed to control these powers. Majin Buu, who did have some willpower (quite enough to kill Babidi in the series anyway), and whose willpower was enough for even Gohan to have trouble, didn't have enough conscious thought development to exercise that willpower over those powers, another requirement needed to survive. Hey, Kid Buu was just that, a kid. Kids don't have the same development of conscious thought as do adults, or even teenagers (unless they're Goten and Trunks, of course). And besides Buu's evil, so that works too. Hehehe.

Immediately Buu's evil red eyes widened and rolled back in its head. Its body arched so rapidly and at such an angle that it seemed to be having a permanent seizure while in mid-air. Its arms flailed about and its legs kicked wildly at everything and nothing, and its head frantically snapped to and fro in this direction and that, sometimes even stretching, but Gohan could see by the stiffening of Majin Buu's little teeny tiny torso that the powers were spreading everywhere. Soon it was like a cancer; despite the Kid's struggles, the powers seeped into every part of it, eating away slowly within every strand of gum that was Kid Majin Buu.

Gohan, who was now in only his normal state (and still with black and gray hair, but with darker brown hair joining the two other colors on top) decided to help along the process by battering Kid Buu more than it already was. Shifting into a very familiar pose, he slid his hands back behind his body on his right side and starting chanting.

Goku, who had been watching the antics of one Kid Buu, suddenly whirled around as he heard a voice. This voice was saying some very familiar syllables, although the owner of the voice he could not quite fathom at all at first glance. The person (was it a girl or boy?) had black hair with grey and dark brown highlights, Gohan's clothes (he realized with a shock that this person _was_ Gohan), a weird type of countenance, and currently a slow-forming Kamehameha Wave in his hands. Since this was Gohan, and he was forming a Kamehameha, then whatever was going on with Buu must not be working, or working too slow. Since, Buu was still in its permanent seizure affliction, Goku thought that it was likely the latter that was the case.

So, the process was being too slow. What could he, Goku, do about that? Well, maybe, the same thing as Gohan; a Kamehameha. He moved into the classic stance and started his own incantation.

Vegeta was still watching that darn Buu when the first Kakkagaki started chanting. But he looked up sharply when Kakkarot started his own K-wave. The "Sons" (pah!, he grumbled. Every one of them—except the first Kakkagaki—were third class bakas) were not aiming at each other with their Kamehamehas, or even at him. They were both focused on Kid Buu, with the obvious intent of blowing it to smithereens.

The Saiyan smirked.

And started charging up his Gallic Gun.

Piccolo and Krillin were watching evens from afar, accompanied by the more than annoying company of Goten and Trunks. The two gakis were making pests of themselves, always cheering when Gohan got a hit on Buu. Their throats should have been worked raw by now, as Gohan had just positively been beating Buu up, but no. They were instead exclaiming in loud voices about the situation Majin Buu was finding itself in. they were even having a contest between each other to see how long Buu would last. Goten was betting ten minutes. Trunks was for five. Whoever won got to have a full day of piggyback riding on Gohan's back for the rest of the day.

Suddenly Trunks sat upright, highly alert. Goten scrambled up too, asking Trunks,

"What is it, Trunks? What is it?"

"Shh, you dummy, you're breaking my concentration!"

"I'm not a dummy! It's not nice to call someone a dummy, Trunks."

"Shut up!"

"Both of you, be quiet!" commanded a voice that belonged to neither Trunks nor Goten. They blinked at each other, then looked up, and blinked at a menacing Piccolo looming over them. They blinked at each other again, then turned to Krillin, whom was looking over their heads at the strange sight before them.

The Devil Duo swiveled back to look at what Krillin was looking at, and gaped in their own turn.

Gohan (well, at least the person who was wearing his clothes anyway), Goku, and Vegeta all had formed some sort of ki attack. The Sons both had a swirling K-wave in their hands, while Vegeta sported a dangerous Gallic Gun in his own. Just at that moment, they released their ki attacks at the same time, and all jumped forward to a prone Majin Buu, which could not do anything to dodge them (too bad). The kis all collided into Majin Buu, crashing together into a single beam of light to take down on thing: the evil child-minded Kid Majin Buu.

And it worked. The fused ki attacks blew it apart. Buu's mind had been destroyed by the powers enough that his regenerative properties were slower to work. So it floated for a while in the air in tons of tiny separate pieces, all of these being eaten away, even as they were slowly drifting towards other pieces, at a faster rate by Gohan's powers thanks to the attacks. A few of these powers even returned to Gohan, already done with their work and begging for more.

One such power was the animalistic mind, so Gohan recorded the fact that Goten, Trunks, Piccolo, and Krillin were on the mountaintop where he had left them, gaping. He also took in the more important concept that Majin Buu was about to blow, even with all of its tiny pieces still slowly clumping together as they were.

You're probably thinking right now that Gohan's going to tell the others to get out of there, he'll be right with them after taking care of the Buu business. That would be the right thing to do, and also the series' Mystic Gohan thing to do. But no, that's not what my bad-boy vigilante did.

What Gohan did was, he trapped each piece of Majin Buu's gum pieces inside a harmless ki shield. He trapped every last piece of those pieces, even the ones that were Buu's eyes originally (heh, heh, heh) and combined the ki shields (SP: Wow, there's been a lot of combining and fusing in this chapter). With this combining of the ki shields, he allowed all the pieces of Majin Buu to at least coexist, if not drift together (as by now, Buu's mind was too deteriorated to be able to regenerate at all). He strengthened the ki shield around Buu's forms so much (he borrowed a little bit of Goten's ki to help, although he did return it later) that no sort of self-explosion would break the shield and harm the Earth.

It was only a few seconds later that the evil entity self-destructed, fear (or something akin to fear) coming in waves off of the pieces of Majin Buu. This explosion bounced off of Gohan's shield (it was a good thing that Gohan had blocked off his mind from his shield, or he would be having a huge headache right now) and went back to its source, harming only the pieces who were about to explode and causing them to explode, resulting in several explosions. All these explosions bounced about everywhere within Gohan's shield, building up pressure, but Gohan only widened his ki shield so that the explosions would have to travel farther in order to get to the opposite side, and thus lose their force.

Soon his ki shield was wide enough that the smaller explosions died away completely. Gohan widened it further, the shield almost coming to touch him; it was so far-reaching. The bigger explosions died away, and then finally the biggest explosions. All that was left of Majin Buu was… the return of Gohan's powers. Gohan received them happily, knowing that he would return them to their rightful owners as soon as he got back to Otherworld. He would also try to convince Gabrielle and Arikeru to free them of their spirit fusion with him, if only for the sake of privacy. If not, then fine. He was comfortable with them each now, even Gabrielle.

Gohan let a few more seconds pass by, just to make sure that it was done, then drained the ki shield back into himself. He replaced the ki he'd borrowed from Goten with that same amount and a little bit more (he'd just say he didn't remember exactly how much he'd borrowed), then turned to the others and said,

"It's nearly sunset. Let's go home."

And that's what they did. They went home, heading away from the sun in the west for the WMAT arena and grounds in the east inthe darkening sky.

* * *

Kakkagaki: short for "Kakkarot's gaki", or "Kakkarot's brat". 

Gaki: brat

Namekian turtle bass: Not a real fish, unknown if there are any fish on planet Namek

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A/n: :D

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**General Answers to General Questions**

No general questions in need of being answered, so... no answers! YAY! I do have to thank everybody for their reviews, for they held so many compliments! Stop it, guys! You're making me blush! /Blushes/ THANKS!! /Bows/

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**

Thanks to **Shaye**, **DBZ Chick1**, **gaul1**, **Tiara Shin**, **Marshmellow13Dragon**, and **Night-Owl123** for their excellent reviews! /Bows/

Whew! Finally that's over with. Took me long enough. Hehehe… /Sweatdrops/

If there are any spelling or grammar mistakes, that's because my left index finger got badly pinched and is hurting even now like bitter hell. I can't really type with it (I can, but it hurts too much), so my left second finger is doing all the work of the index. I also tend to ignore my spell checker, because if I followed the spell checker all the time some points of my story would not come across as well as if I just left it alone, and besides it would get an ego boost. Trust me, not a good thing. /Glares at the offending spell checker/

Anyway! So Majin Buu's FINALLY been defeated! What's next? Will Gohan actually convince Gabrielle and Arikeru to un-fuse with him? Whatever for?! And what about the rest of the tournament? Is that still going on? Well, let's find out the answers to all of these burning questions, next **Vigilante Angel**!

**REVIEW! **My finger will feel lots better if you do. Even if you don't like the chapter, at least review to offer me condolences upon the imminent loss of my fingernail. But if you don't like my whole fic, why'd you read this far? No flames please. If you liked this chapter, AND want to offer me condolences, but are not really in the mood to review, **REVIEW ANYWAY!!** I need them, I need them!!

Thank you!

Sayonara from,

**TheShadowPanther** and, I'm sure, with regards from _Aline_, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 11.25.04. Happy Thanksgiving from America, everyone! _


	30. Chapter the Twenty Ninth: Ruptured

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Twenty-ninth

Disclaimer: I am in no way related to the Toriyama family. If I were, I wouldn't be writing fanfictions, I'd be drawing manga, I would be speaking Japanese as my first language, and I would be having tea everyday as a part of my routine. Although I do have tea, I can't speak Japanese, and I don't draw manga, although I'm planning to try to start doing that last one soon enough. Heh. So… no, I don't own DBZ.

Disclaimer Two: See Chapter the Twenty-seventh for this disclaimer.

A/n: CHRISTMAS BREAK!! YEAH BABY!! WHOO-HOO! I'm jamming, I'm jamming, uh-huh, uh-huh, oh yeah, oh YEAHHHHHH! Now nothing can get in the way of my creativity, not even stressing about a paper to write! YAHOO! /Does war dance/

/Calms down/ OK, folks, this is a semi-long chapter we're about to read! I was actually going to write more, but then I decided it would get too long, and I don't like those kinds of chapters. Unlike my prologue… /Shudders/

But anyway! This chap is a filler chapter, and I don't know quite how this chapter fits in with whatever plot I have (which, mind you, isn't much, heh /nervous laugh/), but I'm sure that it goes in there somewhere… Hm…

Aline: /Just looks at authoress/ **…**

SP: Hm! Oh well, I'm sure Aline will help me figure it out **sometime**, if not now.

Aline: /Smiles like a satisfied cat/

SP: Yeah… So! Enjoy, and review please! Have a merry Christmas, or at least the next holiday rolling around, if you don't celebrate that! ;)

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Gohan let a few more seconds pass by, just to make sure that it was done, then drained the ki shield back into himself. He replaced the ki he'd borrowed from Goten with that same amount and a little bit more (he'd just say he didn't remember exactly how much he'd borrowed), then turned to the others and said, _

_"It's nearly sunset. Let's go home." _

_And that's what they did. They went home, heading away from the sun in the west for the WMAT arena and grounds in the east in the darkening sky._

:-:-:-:

**First Rest Day, _Finally_ **

Yesterday had been a day full of activity. The first round of the WMA Tournament, the defeat of Majin Buu, and then the reunion with the Z-senshi, oh, it was hectic. The defeat of Majin Buu was a record in the fact that it was beaten in only one day, while their other enemies usually took more than one day to formulate and plan and execute it to the point that the villain was defeated. Even Cell had taken more than a day before his ultimate defeat.

But that is not the point. The point is, it was the day _after_ yesterday, which meant it was today, and today was the first rest day of the WMAT. The first rest day of the WMAT was an excellent day for all sorts of stuff, not just resting for the second round the next day. Even though it was officially a rest day, and therefore not a tournament day, hundreds of people still turned out in hopes of seeing any of the fighters that had competed in the WMAT tournament. Some of these hundreds of people were fighters whom had not passed the preliminary rounds. They were watching to see who was strong among this lot and who was not.

One person that these people were not able to see (at least for a while, anyway), was Gohan. Nowhere was the teenage warrior with a penchant for carrying around a sword to be found. He wasn't in the WMAT hospital ward, nor was he near the fighter's lounge. He wasn't even found gorging on the buffet, unlike one certain Saiyan (nope, not Goku!), or in any of the sparring areas. Goku, however, was around; his eldest son had given his father the twenty-four hours that day, saying that he (Gohan) would be able to get to Earth his own way.

Goku had Grinned™ at Gohan's obvious unsaid statement and had taken the twenty-four hours in a shot. Never mind the fact that he wouldn't be able to fight the second tournament day without those twenty-four hours; he had an idea that was most appealing to him after being dead seven years. Of course, he would have to go back to Otherworld for a short time, but it was family time now, or rather Goten time. But that would come later. Now it was time for some fun with family and friends.

But we digress, once again. Gohan was actually in Otherworld, arguing with a sentient being located within his own head. It may seem strange to you, even a sign of insanity, that Gohan would be arguing with a "sentient being" in his own head, but that was indeed what Gohan was doing. Why, you may ask. I shall tell you why.

The sentient being Gohan was arguing with was Arikeru, and the argument was about whether the sword-spirit should continue to stay within Gohan's head or not. Arikeru was all for staying within, as it happened to like being in Gohan. Gohan wanted Arikeru out, not because the spirit was invading his personal space, but because Gohan was so used to Arikeru being a corporeal sword, not a spirit. Gohan felt very vulnerable without Arikeru, and even if the demi-Saiyan got another sword, it just wouldn't be the same.

Arikeru, on the other hand, liked it within Gohan's mind; not just because it was sharing a mind with someone else and finally had company, although that certainly was a factor, but because it was so mysterious in Gohan's mind, like a castle.

Yes, it was quite mysterious, having been organized into different sections so neatly that if Chichi had seen it (and been able to make sense of it) she would have wept with pride. And we know Chichi does not ever weep, even if her husband and oldest son both die in the same tournament to save the world, and don't come back. Some organization, eh?

Anyway, Gohan's mind had sections for each part of his life. There was one section for all the memories before his death, pre-Cell if you will, and another section containing post-Cell memories. There was a section containing all the negative feelings Gohan had ever felt, including rage and depression, hate and helplessness. Quite obviously, there was also a section for all the positive feelings, and this section received a lot of activity was Gohan was almost always happy (happy, but not his father's version of happy, thank Kami). The negative feeling section, labeled Section 251, also saw much activity, but certainly not as much as Section 119, the positive feelings section. There were many sections within Gohan's mind, but all of these sections were further subdivided into smaller and more specific sections.

For example, the post-Cell memories were subdivided into Otherworld memories, Section 365, and Living World memories, Section 176. Section 176 was further divided into Sections 489 and 490 with memories in one section (489) and other memories in the other section (490), including the visits with the Z-senshi on his fifteenth birthday.

The point of all this chatter is that Gohan had a highly organized mind, like a castle (SP: Think Hogwarts. Ooh…), and Arikeru, naturally, wanted to explore each and every section in this "castle." The sword also happened to have a fondness for being in mysterious places, probably a built-in survival tactic, as Arikeru was a very mysterious sentient being itself, so it stands to reason that Arikeru would like it within Gohan's mind if it were so mysterious.

So that was the argument. Arikeru seemed to be winning by a long shot, although Gohan wasn't doing too shabby in his attempts to catch up. The debate went on for ten more minutes before Gabrielle finally stepped in. She stopped the argument with a calm "SHUT UP!!!"

Silence reigned.

Gabrielle ignored the wide-eyed look she was getting from Gohan and the detached curiosity that was on Arikeru's face and proceeded with her peace-making address.

"Okay, what we need to do here to settle this situation, obviously, is to compromise," she said. She ignored, once more, the actions of Gohan, who now was groaning at the word "compromise."

"Arikeru, since you want to stay with Gohan to explore and have company, you'll stay. But—" and here Gabrielle silenced Gohan with her best glare (which, decidedly, was not as terrifying as Vegeta's, or even Gohan's own).

"But, you will have to come to Gohan's aid if and when he needs you, even if he doesn't call your name. Is that all right with you, Gohan-san?" Gabrielle asked, a bit sarcastically.

Gohan blinked at the honorific attached to his name. _Gohan-san_? Why was Gabrielle calling him _that_? After a second impatient glare, however, Gohan shook himself free of his confusion and answered with a hasty, "Sure," after he quickly replayed Gabrielle's proposal in his section of his head.

Now, while we're still on the subject of the conversation within Gohan's head, let's talk about what Gohan is doing _outside_ of his head. Before this paragraph was written, most of you may be thinking that Gohan is in a public place, standing, and with a fierce look on his radically changed face. People are staring at him, wondering what he's doing, and Osi and Ron are nudging him to wake him up, but to no avail. That is what most of you are thinking, correct?

Wrong. Let us take a detour yet again and have ourselves somewhat of a flashback.

:-:-:-:

_After Gohan had arrived back in Otherworld, and after he had explained to his dad and his friends about the spirit fusions he'd done, he'd given back all of his borrowed powers back to their original owners. Then he'd given to his dead the twenty-four hours that the fortune-teller Baba had granted him in honor of the WMAT reunion. Gohan didn't need the twenty-four hours; he had his guardian angel pass. He had a vague idea of what his dad was going to do to be able to fight the next day in the tournament, but the demi-Saiyan didn't really care what his dad did anymore, as long as Goku didn't take advantage of his son's pass. That would just tick Gohan off soo bad. Not a pleasant thing to do, trust me._

_Afterwards that, Gohan had seemingly "wandered" off to do some meditation. He hadn't "wandered", but he was meditating, especially since he had seen his face in one of Otherworld's many pools and had seen what a weird combination it was. Besides the gray, black, and dark brown colors in his hair, his face had undergone a major change. It was now in such proportion to the state of Gohan's mind (i.e. with Arikeru and Gabrielle in it) that his face was now so plain and neutral that if any of us saw it we'd wonder what gender he was (hehe that's nice, huh?)._

_Besides Arikeru's influence on Gohan's face, which made it seem less human and more pointy, Gabrielle's smoothed out all the edges of Gohan's face, balancing the masculinity of it with her own femininity. A very strange blend Gohan's face had melded into, and Gohan wanted his original, unique, face back (SP: How selfish of you, Gohan-chan! I'm sure you look great this way too. /Pouts/). It was nice, having Arikeru and Gabrielle with him, but Gohan wanted his face, his own inimitable expression, back at all costs._

_Besides the fact that he felt naked without Arikeru at his side, he felt crowded with Gabrielle joining in and sharing his mind-space with them. As they say, "Two's company, but three's a crowd." (At least I think that's the way it goes…)_

_So Gohan had found a large niche in the mountain near the pool where he'd seen his new face, sank down into a comfortable position, making room for Arikeru's conspicuously empty sheath, and floated into his mind._

:-:-:-:

And that was how he'd come to be having this argument with Arikeru, only to be agreeing to a compromise, as well. Gohan only hoped his face would be the same as it was before he fused with Arikeru. 

Arikeru, upon hearing this hope (SP: Wait, what?! How could that sword have heard that? Gohan was thinking that, not saying it out loud in his own head!!), immediately requested,

**_…Hey, Gohan…could you make me a section of your mind for me so that I would not intrude upon your face?… The way things are now…I will be an influence upon your face…but if I have a section within your mind…I would not do that…._**

Gohan's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You heard that?" he asked.

Arikeru nodded, its sharp gray eyes sparkling mischievously (SP: Ooh, does this mean we'll get an explanation now?!). Gohan winced, while Gabrielle looked on in confusion (SP: She's not the only one. Ohh, my head...).

"Sorry about that," Gohan apologized. Arikeru merely dipped its head. Gohan then thought about Arikeru's own proposal for a few seconds, searching through his own head for…

"Got it. Section 3950 is free, although there's a lot of cobwebs in there. Sorry about those in advance," the demi-Saiyan informed Arikeru. Upon Gohan's words, the scene (SP: Wow, there's a scene (as in scenery) in Gohan's own head? Cool…) shifted to another one, filled with, as Gohan rather understated, an enormous amount of cobwebs. The only clearing, in fact, was where Gohan and Arikeru were. Gabrielle, unfortunately, was a little too much off to the pair's right, so she ended up with a face and head full of cobwebs. Not a very pretty sight (or feeling, either. Ughh!), let me tell ya.

Arikeru, however, was looking about with a dignified approval in its steel gray eyes. Gohan smirked at the expression on Arikeru's face, while Gabrielle groaned and started to wipe off all the spider webs lodged in her face and in her hair.

**_…I like it…_**

Gabrielle looked with Gohan at the sword-spirit and noted with him how indescribably pleased Arikeru looked, even with all the spiderwebs cluttering up the place. They both smiled, for Arikeru had found its home.

Now it was time for Gabrielle. The scene shifted from Arikeru's new section to the one they had previously occupied before, the Central, as Gohan called it. Arikeru was not with them: it'd chosen to remain behind in section 3950 instead of to see where the other two occupants were going. It was just Gohan and Gabrielle, a fact that would turn out to be a bit of a blessing, actually.

"All right, Gab. It's your turn. Do you want to stay in here with the two of us or not?" Gohan started.

Gabrielle turned quickly to stare at Gohan. "What? What are you talking about? You know I'm supposed to stay here with you forever. It's my destiny to do that. I told you that, didn't I?" she stated in a harsh unbelieving voice.

Gohan shot back, "Yeah, you did tell me that. But _I'm_ telling _you_ that you don't have to stay with us in my mind if you don't want to. The thing about Destiny, see, it makes you do things according to fate up to a certain point and then abandons you when you've fulfilled your task in life. Destiny's not a very good long-term planner when everything's all said and done. Why do you think so many people die after they've completed their destinies? It's not just because it was their fate to do so, but because Destiny abandoned them.

"You don't have to hang with Arikeru and me if you really don't want to. No one's making you do that, not even Destiny, this time," Gohan finished, smiling slightly.

Gabrielle hesitated. "But, Gohan, this is Destiny we're talking about. You can't just ignore it as if it were a mere game that you just got bored of! I'm sorry, Gohan, but—"

"Gab, you don't get it, do you? Destiny's done with you! You're free to live your own life now! I know that your mentor told you that it was part of your destiny to stay with us (SP: "Us" as in Gohan, Arikeru, the authoress, the MIA muse, and the readers… right? No? /Blinks/) forever, but she read it wrong! It was only your destiny to fuse with me, not to make yourself miserable wondering about what or how your friends are doing, what or how your family is doing, if anyone misses you or not. Now it's your choice whether or not you want to do that. Now, before you protest, Gabrielle, that you won't be miserable—"

Gabrielle closed her mouth; a trifle stunned, for that was exactly what she had been about to do. She listened with no small amount of surprise as Gohan went on.

"I know you. I know that you will constantly be worrying about your friends and how they're doing, et cetera. I know that you won't be happy. And I don't like any of my friends to be unhappy. It just depresses me too, and I don't like being depressed, either. So you have a choice: you can stay here and follow your "destiny" against your will, or you can unfuse with me and Arikeru and be with your friends and not have to worry about them. What'll be?" Gohan said, a knowing sparkle in his eyes, even in the Central of his own mind.

Gabrielle simply tried another tactic. Gohan was wearing her down, but she still believed in her destiny, and she had two more tricks up her sleeve to try.

"If I unfuse with you guys, I'll lose part of my memories of you. I won't be able to remember things about you that I know for sure right here, right now. For example, I might forget that you were the Gold Saiyan who defeated Cell and saved the world. I don't want to forget that. I want to remember that Arikeru was once a sword, a real sword, and that it led me to you, or you to me, whichever you prefer. I don't want to forget any of that. I'll cry if I do. I will, I seriously will. It'll seem strange, but I will cry if I forget you guys. And I don't normally cry. At all. So—"

The psychic was interrupted by Gohan's act of gently placing his hands on her shoulders to stop her. He said, looking her straight in the eyes,

"I'm flattered that you think of me as a friend _that_ much, Gab. But you don't have to worry. You won't lose any information you gathered. It's just that the visual memories, you know, the memories you saw of my life, they won't stay with you. But the information that you got from those memories will always stay with you, even if you don't exactly come up with it right away. In fact—"

Gohan took his hands off of Gabrielle's shoulders at this point and stuck them into his pockets again, then continued, "In fact, if you do a little meditation after we unfuse, you'll find out that what I'm saying is true. You'll just have to find the information and which part of your mind it's going to be stored in, and you're set. That's it.

"You'll remember that I _am_ the Gold Saiyan, and that Arikeru was once a real corporeal sword. You just won't be able to remember what you saw of my memories, exactly, but you _will _know that you saw my memories. That's all," he tried to reassure his friend. But Gabrielle still wasn't convinced that this was the right way to go. So she kept trying (SP: Persistent gal, isn't she? /Jerks thumb over at OC/ Reminds me of someone… _(SP herself, that is. Heh)_).

"But what about you? And Arikeru? Will you guys be all right by yourselves?" she asked. She was being uncharacteristically anxious, considering that she was a psychic. She actually rather liked Gohan (And Arikeru too, but…) as a friend, and as a friend, she had the obligation to worry about him. Gohan was right, she _would_ worry about her other friends, Videl, Erasa, Sharpner, so on, but she would also worry about Gohan and Arikeru, and if they, too, were all right. Although she wouldn't show that publicly. Nope, she wouldn't do that. Gohan, undoubtedly, would pick up on that, though.

Gohan Grinned™ broadly. "Of course. In fact, why don't we come visit you every once in a while, so you won't worry _too_ much?" Ah, so he _had_ picked up on that. Smug little delinquent (SP: O.o).

WAIT A MINUTE!! Did he just say that he'd come visit her every once in a while?!

"Really? Then you meant what you said about me being your friend?" she asked eagerly.

Gabrielle had not missed what Gohan had said about how he didn't like his friends to be unhappy. She had hoped, subconsciously, that she was one of those friends, but hadn't dared to say anything about it at the time. Now it looked like she was indeed considered a friend, even though as a psychic she should already have known whether or not she was (SP: Basically Gab's psychic powers don't work, have never worked, and will never work on Gohan and the Z-senshi. Hope that clears things up somewhat. ).

She received a strange look from Gohan that only confirmed her suspicions. With a shriek of delight, she thrust her fist in the air and did a celebratory jig. Gohan just watched her, a slightly amused, yet more weirded-out, expression on his face. Gabrielle soon noticed and presently stopped her jig, a sheepish grin appearing on her face.

"Sorry," she apologized.

Gabrielle couldn't believe it. She was one of Gohan's friends! No one had become her friend since kindergarten, and even now she was drifting farther away from her remaining friends, which wasn't a good thing. She'd have to do something about that. First, though, she still had to win this argument, so she played the second of her two up-the-sleeve tricks.

"There's one other thing, Gohan. If I unfuse with you, and Arikeru, I will lose my psychic powers," she proclaimed, looking Gohan steadily in the eye.

Gohan simply raised an eyebrow at her. "Do you _really_ want keep them?" he asked her, more than a bit sarcastically. Gabrielle just hung her head, knowing she was flat-out defeated. Gohan had won this war.

The second of the two arguments in the Central settled, the two clasped hands (SP: No!! Not _that_ way! They are not boy/girl friends (as in), or ever will be! Keep you minds away from that path of madness, I beg of you!! This is NOT romance!!), their fingers intertwining with the other person's. the two faced each other, their eyes closed and heads bent a little, and started chanting, each saying a different incantation than the other.

Gohan said, "Leoclinis brigandos tilanus, shikasho ("Help, do, and obey, my powers.")."

Gabrielle, for her part, said, "O Praeses Tenebrarum, adiuvas me neconfundere cum tacito bellatore in permutatione pro meis potestatibus et meo loco ut Custos Tenebrarum Bono. Commodas nobis tuum adminiculum! Neconfundi!" (1) ("Oh Guardian of Darkness, help me to unfuse with this silent warrior in exchange for my powers and my position as Keeper of the Darkness for Good. Lend us your support! Unfuse!")

There was a flash of light in the Central as the two interwove their individual chants with the other person's. They felt a sudden tearing (but painless, oddly enough) sensation within themselves, as if they were being ripped apart into two halves; yet their hands were still clasped, and they weren't moving either. Yet the two continued, even as a whirlwind started up around them, and the internal tearing intensified to a point where they almost couldn't take it anymore. Even through all this, they still chanted, Gabrielle and Gohan finally coming to the last syllable after hours of painless torture within and without. After the last syllable (which for Gohan was "-sho" and for Gabrielle was the first "-di"), everything went—

Still.

It was still for quite a while before Gabrielle finally opened her eyes. What she saw, instead of the Central of Gohan's mind, was a wall of rock. Instead of the black glittering ceiling, if one could say a mind had a ceiling, of the Central, she saw a pink sky littered with golden yellow clouds. Instead of Gohan, she saw… Gohan.

But not the same Gohan she'd seen in the Central. This Gohan was Gohan, but not the _real_ Gohan, the Gohan she'd gotten to know behind the coal black eyes. This was the outward façade of Gohan, the flesh and bone, the appearance, the one people judged.

One thing was for sure though. Gohan had his face back again. Gabrielle could clearly see that Gohan looked like himself now, with no pointy edges or feminine angles to make him so plain as to be neutral in gender. Gabrielle suddenly grinned in amusement at the image Gohan's face must have been in comparison to his original face, the one she saw looking back out at her now.

"What's so funny?" Gohan asked, seeing a grin on Gabrielle's face. The former psychic simply shook her head; the smile still plastered on her face as she did so. Gohan raised an eyebrow, but let the subject drop.

The demi-Saiyan glanced up at Otherworld around him, then watched, entertained, as Gabrielle herself took a closer look at the scenery around her. She raised her eyebrows at the obviously dysfunctional quality of the place, but made no comment. She didn't know what this place was, but she was pretty sure it was…

"Welcome to Otherworld, Gab."

:-:-:-:

1) Actual Latin. Took me a HFIL of a lot of time to compose, what with the ablatives and the accusatives and this and that, UGH! Thank Kami it's over! Although "neconfundere" is a made-up combination, of my muse's inspiration. "Neconfundere" and "neconfundi" are not real Latin words, but "ne" and "confundere" are. :D

:-:-:-:

**General Responses** **To Reviews**

1) Thanks to everyone who wished for my finger to feel better! It is now, btw, but I have the feeling that i'm going to have a new nail for a Christmas present. Heh. Thanks again everyone!!

2) Gohan is not using the borrowed powers he got from the Kais and everyone else, or even Gabrielle, to win the WMAT. How can he? He gave them all back, and unfused with Gab! He can't use Arikeru in the WMAT, either, so he's all alone there, too.Poor, poor Gohan...

3) Got 20 more votes in the romance poll for option D! Sorry guys, poll's closed! No more voting, please!!

4) I should hope that this fic is amusing. It's supposed to be. Heh. I hope this ending has a bit more of a cliffie for it, but...

5) What makes _anyone_ think that the tournament's going to go on?! Tell me why you guys think so!! Go on, I dare ya! /Challenging look on face/

Aline: SP, you slacker, you KNOW--

SP: /Slaps hand over muse's mouth/ Shut up! I don't want my readers to know!!

Aline: Mmf grmph shirr!

SP: Shut UP, I say! /Turns to readers/ Move along, nothin' to see here, just another authoress/muse spat--er--discussion...

6) Thanks to everyone for their reviews!!

:-:-:-:

A/n: Whew… My Latin teacher was right, it _is_ harder to go from English to Latin than it is to go from Latin to English. Oh, man. And I don't even know if it's right, either. So, Latin peeps, help me out here! I need your help! Plz!

Other than that, though… :D

So, Gohan's been arguing with both Arikeru and Gabrielle to get out of his head, but only succeeded with Gabrielle! Gabrielle's lost her powers, her position as Keeper of the Darkness for Good, and the part of her memories because of the spirit un-fusion! AND she's _alive_ in the Otherworld!! Weird!! Arikeru, on the other hand, has a new section in Gohan's mind for his own living uses, and Gohan's got his face back! YAY! But this is only the first few hours of the first WMAT rest day! What is going to happen for the rest of the day? And how is Gabrielle going to get down to the Living World from the Otherworld? She's no longer a psychic! Well, let's find out, on the next **Vigilante Angel**! C'mon, let's go! /Leads mob of readers to the next chapter, when it pops up/

Cya!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 12.18.04_


	31. Chapter the Thirtieth: Larks

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirtieth

Disclaimer: You _know_ I don't own Dragonball Z. Do I gotta do it _every_ time? /DBZ lawyers nod/ Aw, man…

Disclaimer Two: Chapter the Twenty-seventh, folks. That's where it all is.

A/n: HI! I finally found a divider that the QuickEdit will take!! No more html rulers for me, thanks! YAY!! I'm so proud of myself. /Beams/

Aline: /Looks™ at authoress/ Very nice, SP. /Sarcastic/

SP: Meanie. /Sticks tongue out at muse/ I'll vanquish you if you don't stop being so mean. Better yet, why don't you just leave?

Aline: But I have a part in this chapter. I can't leave.

SP: Really? Oh well, you can always come back later. I know you. You always have impeccable timing, except if you're being a brat.

Aline: What was that, SP?! /Angry/

SP: /Holds up hands in a certain position/

Aline: /Raises eyebrow and settles down/

SP: That's better. /Aline grunts/ Yes, I know it's so hard for you to be nice, Aline, but we must move on with the story. Enjoy, my friends! /Says last to readers/

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_The demi-Saiyan glanced up at Otherworld around him, then watched, entertained, as Gabrielle herself took a closer look at the scenery around her. She raised her eyebrows at the obviously dysfunctional quality of the place, but made no comment. She didn't know what this place was, but she was pretty sure it was… _

_"Welcome to Otherworld, Gab."_

:-:-:-:

Fifteen minutes later, Gohan and Gabrielle appeared on the ground of the Living World. Gohan had to steady Gabrielle when they landed, or the ex-psychic would have fallen. Gabrielle blew her hair out of her face and glared at a straight-faced Gohan, who promptly smiled. Gabrielle then narrowed her black eyes and her friend, but Gohan could not (and would not) recover his mask.

Finally, Gabrielle got impatient and thwacked Gohan on the shoulder. She attempted to do the same mentally, but as her powers were no longer with her, she failed (obviously). That caused some disorientation for the former psychic, who still had to get used to being without them. She blinked slowly while Gohan turned to her, probably in reaction to Gabrielle's "light tap" on his shoulder. Gohan saw Gabrielle blink and correctly guessed why.

"It's going to take a while for you to get used to being without your powers. I don't think you'll ever fully get used to it, actually," he said to her, shrugging a bit. Gabrielle nodded absently, still disoriented.

"Well, I'd better let you find your friends. You've been away from them for a night and half a day now. I'm sure they're worrying themselves sick about you," Gohan told Gabrielle. Gabrielle immediately gasped and semi-shrieked,

"Oh my gosh! I left Videl waiting in her hotel all night! I can't believe it! oh Kami, I wasn't thinking about her when I went into the desert! Poor Videl, and Erasa, and Sharpner, too! Where are they, Gohan? Can you find their kis?"

Gohan obliged and soon Gabrielle was sprinting towards the Satan WMAT hotel, where Videl was still, assumedly sleeping. Erasa and Sharpner were both about seven degrees further south than the hotel, which Gabrielle had rapidly calculated to be the gym. Gohan looked after the streak of black and white that was Gabrielle, following her with his eyes for as long as he was able, before she disappeared beyond even his superior Saiyan sight. He then smirked and strode off in the opposite direction, his hands in his pockets. He ignored the appraising looks he got from the several groups of girls that he passed, although he got quite a few of them. Hey, what can I say? When a guy's hot, he's hot. Can't help it. /Shrugs/

Soon Gohan arrived where he most wanted to be: with the Z-senshi. He had come up from behind them, so he saw this as a perfect opportunity to be sneaky. So he hung back a bit; not quite part of the group, but seeming to be part of it anyway. He followed them for only five minutes before he was spotted by two people; his favorite two people in all of Earth besides Piccolo.

Goten and Trunks were able to slip away unnoticed by everyone except for, of course, Piccolo and Vegeta. Vegeta looked back at whom the gakis were flocking to and snorted, but turned back to the gang after the brats reached the elder demi-Saiyan. Piccolo also made no comment; it wasn't as if those two were in incompetent hands after all.

Too bad. There was going to be some fun to be had that day.

Without too much difficulty, Gohan, Goten, and Trunks managed to find a courtyard where they had relative privacy. There they sat and chatted for a bit about yesterday's events, and what had happened during Gohan's absence for that day. Gohan was sent into a fit of laughter upon Trunks' relation of how the Demon Duo both tried to jump on Vegeta, but failed miserably as the Saiyan prince turned at the last minute and caught them both by their ankles. Vegeta had threatened them both with doing chores with Bulma and "Kakkarot's harpy mate" if they didn't leave him alone.

It wasn't the fact that the Duo had been caught by Veg-chan that was funny, it was the "threat" Vegeta had employed that Gohan found hysterical. Apparently Vegeta had finally realized that pounding the gakis did no good, the Duo just bounced back.

Actually, the Demon Duo bounced back from everything, but it was the things that they were "forced" to endure that were important in this case.

After Gohan had managed to calm down and wipe the tears from his eyes, then, then the "fun" began. Oh boy.

Let's see if you can guess what's about to happen. You guys have any ideas? /Waits patiently/

…

…

…

Done? If you guessed a prank, you were right. If you guessed several pranks, you were even more right, heh. But if you guessed that more than one person is going to be pranked, then you must be some kind of long-distance mind reader, even from all the way you're sitting, because you are so right, you can't be more right. LOL. But! _What_ are the pranks, and _who_ are the victims?

…

Let's find out. ;)

And so we tune back into the Demon Trio's discussion, only to find that they've already moved past the details of the pranks and are in the process of deciding whom to play it on. Wow, they're pretty speedy. What was that, six minutes, give or take two minutes, that they took to decide? Phew…

Wait, what's that? They've already decided whom they will prank?! _WHAT?!_ We missed the whole thing?! DARN IT!! /Steams/ Now we'll have to be strung along like a group of puppets to see any action!! I HATE being a puppet! I'm supposed to be the PUPPETEER (and in fact I am, muahaha!! /Evil laugh/)!!! /Steams some more/

Ignoring the steaming mad authoress (who is supposed to be running the show, not holding it up), the muse and readers return to the scene before them, only to see the Demon Trio leaving. Quickly the readers chase after them, with the muse floating indifferently after (that's Aline for you…), all leaving the ranting authoress by herself. She knows what is going to happen anyway… why not?

And so the readers find Gohan and Goten sneaking into the Satan WMAT hotel and going past a certain "champion's" daughter's suite, where two voices could be heard. Some readers stay behind to listen to the conversation within, while the others keep tailing the Son brothers.

Suddenly the Son brothers halted as their heads crackled with a voice, one whose owner shared a mind-link with the both of them: Trunks. They (the Brothers, that is) listened intently to the voice, then looked along the walls of the corridor they were in. They apparently didn't find what they were looking for, for they backtracked a bit, all the while checking the numbers on the doors, it looked like. They stopped again, checked another door, and grinned™ at each other. Gohan's smile was perfectly evil, all crooked and no with niceness in it. Goten's Grin™ was a tad bit more innocent, but _only_ a tad. The readers, including the ones who stayed behind at dear Videl's door to listen (who rejoined the others as they were coming back down the aisle) became frightened, for those smiles meant nothing good.

Then Gohan and Goten returned to normal, their psychotic smiles simply looks of concentration now, as Goten attempted to pick the lock. The readers started Goten in consternation before Gohan grabbed his otouto-chan and disappeared, unfortunately leaving the readers behind.

But then the authoress showed up, again, and instantly transported herself and the readers into the suite that they stood outside of, revealing Gohan and Goten bustling about with quite a bit of energy. Goten was putting up a camera where the wall with the bureau next it met the ceiling and the other wall, while Gohan, Gohan was doing other nasty work.

Gohan was conjuring from midair the things that were needed for the prank, such as: hair dye, cloth/fabric dye, black permanent markers, and several makeup containers, each constructed to change color each time the user took makeup out of the container. The readers watched with growing horror as the elder demi-Saiyan looked around and found upon the suite's bureau lots and lots of makeup.

Laughing evilly, Gohan picked up some of the containers from the bureau and replaced them with his conjured ones. With a forest green glow, Gohan's containers were bewitched to look exactly like the original ones, and were placed in exactly the same places as the original ones had been, not a millimeter out of place. The containers (Gohan's, that is) were also covered by illusions to contain colors exactly like the original makeup colors, so that the user would not be suspicious, even when the makeup was on his/her face.

Goten also replaced some of the makeup containers, such as the little ones, with the black permanent markers, again enchanted to look like the original ones. The little containers had something marked suspiciously like "eye shadow" on them, but even the authoress can't make it out, clutched mightily as they were in Goten's hands.

Done with their evil tasks, Goten collected the hair and fabric dyes. The Brothers Son grinned™ devilishly at each other again, before they disappeared again, this time taking the readers and the authoress with them, as the authoress makes sure they do (Aren't I nice? Be happy and bow to me).

The next place they Kai Transmitted to was another corridor, but this one was down two floors in the same hotel from the previous one (SP: Oh my gosh, I just realized that I've been making Gohan Kai Transmit to places where there aren't any kis. Even places he's never been before. O.o). Trunks' voice was heard once again by the two (and us, too, but we can't understand him for some odd reason. Muahahahaha), and they quickly located the next suite. In fact the suite was right in front of them, its door left open invitingly. Obviously the usual inhabitant didn't think it was necessary to keep the door closed, as no one normally could enter without going past the security at both the front and back door/gates. Too bad that person had never heard of Saiyans and Kai/Instant Transmission. Hee.

In this suite, Goten easily found the hair gel that the inhabitant of this suite was famous for using. There were about five bottles of it on the desk, actually, and each of them was only half-full. Gohan took three of the bottles, emptied them, and refilled them up with the hair dye that Goten held in his hands, then let a giggling Goten do the same to the other two, after Goten had put up another camera.

However, they soon had to vacate the premises, due to a combination of Trunks' mental voice and two kis, which the Trio knew to be the kis of the inhabitants of the two suites they'd just raided. Gohan Kai Transmitted both he and Goten to Trunks place outside of the Satan WMAT hotel, where they appeared just before the two kis showed up in person.

Turning away, Gohan led his two brothers away from the hotel, adopting a resigned look on his face as the two younger demi-Saiyans started poking him. The Trio did this act expertly, having had to do this kind of thing every time they played a prank. The two people about to be pranked didn't even spare them a glance; they were too busy hurrying into the hotel.

When no one was watching, Gohan put a hand on Goten's head and his other hand on Trunks' shoulder. He Kai Transmitted him and them to their hotel, where the Z-senshi had stayed overnight at because it had been too dark to go home. They continued the Poke-and-Prod Act™ (Poor Gohan-chan…) even as they stepped out of the park square they'd Transmitted into, for one must act innocent even in the committing of dastardly deeds, after all.

Finally Gohan grabbed the two young kids "escorting" him and told them to stop. He had a mock-glare on his face that completely transparent to the devils it was turned upon (and us too!), but to outsiders the look was understandable. Who likes being poked endlessly in both sides by two kids? Not me! Besides, the Demon Trio were almost inside the WMAT fighters' hotel. Time for the last victim.

Trunks and Goten went upstairs this time as Gohan asked for the number of the victim's suite. He explained that he had a home gym order for this fighter, and that the fighter had requested it be delivered to his hotel room on the WMAT island. The number was given up easily enough, and Gohan went upstairs in the pretense of seeing what obstacles there could be in transporting the home gym. He told the number of the suite to the two devils waiting for him, found it with them, then went back downstairs, and went outside.

Once outside, he went over to a clump of heavyset men sitting around and said to them, "All right guys, let's get the home gym in there. There's a staircase that we can go up, but it's pretty tight in some places. With a little teamwork, we should be able to get it up there, though."

The stockiest one of them nodded and grunted at the others, who then stood up to reveal the Chownat home gym (this mesa own! My creation!) they'd been clustered around. It weighed quite a lot; thus there were five people around to lift it, including the stockiest one, apparently the leader.

Gohan directed the quintet into the hotel, past the receptionist's desk, and up the stairs. They made a lot of noise on the tighter parts of the stairs, but finally they got the Chownat gym into the corridor. The big guys lurched past all the other rooms and deposited the Chownat inside the victim's room, then trooped off back down the stairs and out of the hotel. These guys had already been "paid," so to speak, so they had no reason to stay other than to provide Gohan with an alibi. Trunks and Goten, after they were done, would go back to their respective rooms to "grab" two Capsule Game Systems to beat each other at Takayo's Fire II: The Deadly Time Race (1), then race each other downstairs and go outside with the Systems.

Gohan would go downstairs a little bit after them, tell the receptionist, "If Mr. (oh, what's his name, let me see now…) comes by, will you please tell him his home gym order's come in? Thank you," and then go right out.

In fact, that's exactly what they did once Trunks and Goten came out of the suite. The suite had been locked, but thanks to Goten's lock-picking skills (where did he get those from I wonder? /Looks™ at Gohan/), they had gotten in, and when they got out, they re-locked it again.

Once all three were outside again, Gohan dissipated the illusionary people he'd conjured up for this prank. The Chownat, which the illusions had brought in, didn't disappear, however, it was actually solid and waiting for the victim, as was something else.

What was that something else, I wonder?

:-:-:-:

A/n: /Twiddles thumbs and whistles/ Nah, I don't think I'll stop here…

Oh, yes, I will. /Evil grin on face/

Aline: SP—

SP: Nope! Don't want to hear it! We'll just move on to review responses…

NOT! /Another evil grin/

Enjoy the rest of the story. Although that stupid little scroll bar thingy over on the right side of the screen always ruins everything. Hmpf. /Scowls/

Aline: **… **I told you.

SP: /Glares™/

:-:-:-:

The Game Systems that Trunks and Goten had brought out with them were actually the other ends of the cameras that Goten had planted in each of the rooms, including the last victim's, in the WMAT fighters' hotel. The Takayo's Fire II game cartridges in the sides of the Game Systems were actual games, but the Game Systems were hooked up instead to the cameras and operated differently than normal. But anyway, we are not focusing on that (although some of the readers are indeed looking very interested in what the Takayo's Fire II game is all about). We are focusing on something else entirely (the readers looking at the Game Systems look up sharply with guilty looks on their faces).

Upon the Game System screens (Gohan had brought out his own for the last victim as well), three different scenarios were seen. For the first one, a blonde girl was putting on makeup and eye shadow in great gobs, resulting in different colors of makeup (mostly clown color makeup mind you) dancing all over her face, very often clashing with one another. The black permanent marker that was supposed to be the eye shadow was an eyesore among eyesores, as the blonde kept putting more and more on, until her eyelids were so black… it looked like she was going to a funeral. That is, until you looked at the other colors of makeup on her face (white, red, green, blue, yellow, brown… all bright, too), and you wondered just what the HFIL she was doing. Of course, it wasn't exactly her own choice…

On Goten's screen, another blonde, a male this time, was putting on "gel" from Goten and Gohan's so carefully filled gel bottles. The Trio watched as the blonde male took gel from each of the five bottles and applied it to his hair, unknowing that as he added gel, his hair turned black, red, brown, green, and blue. There was a different color for each gel bottle, and as the boy applied the gel in different places, one of the five colors mentioned earlier slowly replaced all of the blond color until none of it was left. Then the male styled his hair in his customary way, making the colors overlap in horrendous ways. The Demon Trio had a lot of trouble holding back their laughs, even as the last victim walked stiffly by.

It was some time before the last victim showed up on Gohan's screen, but when he did, it was with a look of harassed confusion on his face. The Trio couldn't hold back snorts as the victim inspected the Chownat home gym sitting in his room. It wasn't even the Chownat gym that was the prank, although it was certainly an inspired action upon Gohan's part. Maybe now the prank would be pulled off better than the Trio could have hoped. They would see.

To their surprise, the Chownat distracted the victim so much that the fighter (who was the one who defeated Videl in the first round the day before) didn't notice what clothes he was wearing, which _was_ the prank. He had on pink pants with the original brown patches on it (for those pants had been military pants after all), and these brown patches looked like stains from some unknown liquid source. His shirt was loud orange with yellow stripes, and the jacket over that was red and a dark purple. To complete the outfit was a black-and-navy blue sweatband, that, surprisingly, had not been dyed, and yet completed the absurdity of the whole thing. The clothing dye, of course, had been covered by Goten's ki magic, in the case, to look like the real thing, but apparently the grizzled veteran had been too distracted to notice anything out of place.

The Trio, with gentle pressings of the buttons on their Game Systems, took plenty of pictures of the pranked people, and saved these pictures on the Systems. They then turned off the cameras (and the side functions of the Game Systems) and set to work on multi-playing against each together in Takayo's Fire II: The Deadly Time Race.

After five minutes of multi-playing, the Trio turned off their games and quietly wandered away, Trunks and Goten Poking-and-Prodding Gohan again.

They spent another hour locating the Z-senshi (their kis didn't help—they kept moving) and then spent the rest of the day with them: sparring, eating, lounging around, avoiding reporters and rabid fangirls (Grr… I thought we got rid of those!), chatting, and so on. All the while, the Demonic Trio inwardly, and sometimes outwardly, laughed helplessly about the three pranks they'd just done. They didn't need to see the reactions of the people they'd played the prank on; they'd seen it hundreds of times on the other people that they had ripped such a monkeyshine on. It was enough to see the people do such abuse to themselves.

Although, when two blond people rushed by on the way to the public water fountain behind the Z-senshi, Gohan very quietly took out a 35mm camera and snapped two dozen pictures of the people. The last picture Gohan shot was of the two blondes throwing themselves fully into the fountain in their efforts to get _un-pranked_.

:-:-:-:

1) The game Takayo's Fire II: The Deadly Time Race—my creation. Nice title for a game, huh? Hehehe… I like it, myself. It certainly sounds interesting. Hmm, maybe I have a future in naming games… /Contemplates/

:-:-:-:

A/n: /Blinks/

Aline: /Leaves abruptly, _now_ that her part is over/

SP: /Blinks some more/ **…** I think I've just outdone myself. /Faints/

(Looking back, I see that I was a bit cruel in my pranks, but hey…)

:-:-:-:

**General Responses to Reviews**

_Readers find a bulletin board with a note thumbtacked to it. The note says: _

**_These are the answers to the reviewer New Dye's questions, in order. If you wish to know _what_ exactly is going on here, I suggest you read New Dye's review for chap. 30 (actually 29, stupid prologue). _Then_ you will know what's going on. I, myself, have been told to run by New Dye, so... I did! Big surprise! ;) Hehehe... _**

**_SP_**

Question O) That's a very good question. Hahaha! Umm... I guess the answer is that Gohan's private in personal matters (i.e. the ones in his own head) and more public in not so personal matters (i.e. playing pranks and being a GA to Goten). Ask him.

1) That question, I believe, has already been answered. :)

2) You'll have to ask Arikeru that, my friend.

3) I don't know! (Yes I do; you'll just have to see ;)) Doesn't it say in the prologue or something how long it is?

4) That last part (not the question) is true. The first part (the question) is not quite the idea I have in mind, although it certainly was one of the ones I was considering...

5) Those are good questions. I hadn't thought of those. Thanks **Dye**! (The answer to 5b) is yes)

6) I have no idea why. I take it that you have grasped perfectly well the note that I put down during the un-fusion ritual. Heh. Thanks for that.

But, you know, Goha can traverse dimensions. It... oh, never mind. I agree with you. Live/dead people just do **not** have relationships. Period. No sense inconfusing myself. LOL.

6c (comment): Very true, very true. Oh, how well you know me... /Snickers/ (End of list)

7 (M13D): Yep, lookin' neutral _is_ scary. Try it sometime, why doncha? /Looks psychotic/ Muahaha...

LOL!

:-:-:-:

Thanks to N**ew Dye**, **Marshmellow13Dragon**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Night-Owl123**, **Viky**, **Briememory**, and **Tiara Shin** for the seven reviews I got! Only one more to 250! Whoohoo! /Dances gleefully/

So, the first rest day is spent in playing pranks! Nice! Those pranks were more than a bit cruel, yes, but I'm just ruining the moment for you guys. But who were those people who got pranked? Will I get any guesses? You have three for each person, and the first one doesn't count. ;) But what about tomorrow? What adventures will tomorrow bring? Will the next round of the tournament commence? Why are you asking me?! Let's see how many people are right in their guesses of who was pranked, and if the next round starts the next day, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Gaah! I so totally rushed in writing this chapter. I liked writing the pranks, but I had to rewrite the ending so many times I feel like I'm about to burst. Gaah!! Guys, help me out here. Did I do the ending nice? Or did it feel rushed? I may rewrite this chapter ending if you guys think so. I may also rewrite it even if you guys _don't_ think so. Your opinions do count, though! ;)

Thanks for your reviews!! Ciao from,

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, and **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 12.21.04 _

_(Ooh, updated only two days after the last one! Cool!)_


	32. Chapter the Thirty First: Firstly

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-first

Disclaimer: Nope, no can do. I have never own DBZ, I do not own DBZ, and I will not ever own DBZ. Go ask Akira Toriyama who owns DBZ, him or FUNimation? That's what I want to know. Hmpf.

Disclaimer Two: Again, Chapter the Twenty-seventh is where you want to go for this disclaimer.

A/n: I have over 250 reviews! YES!!!!!!!!!! /Thrusts fists into air victoriously/

Aline: Wow. /Deadpan/

SP: /Keeps on cheering/

Aline: -Glances at authoress, decides to take over the a/n- Go ahead, enjoy. It's not like we actually want you to pay attention to us up here. /Sarcastic/

SP: /Now Glaring™ at muse/ THAT'S MY LINE, YOU—! /Aline cuts her off/ Mff gri umpff!

Aline: Like I said, go on and enjoy. Everything's fine here. /Turns to authoress, who is attempting to bite muse's hand/

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Although, when two blond people rushed by on the way to the public water fountain behind the Z-senshi, Gohan very quietly took out a 35mm camera and snapped two dozen pictures of the people. The last picture Gohan shot was of the two blondes throwing themselves fully into the fountain in their efforts to get_ un-pranked

:-:-:-:

**Second Tournament Day, Yay**

"Hello, folks, and welcome to the second day of the famous World Martial Arts Tournament!" Jared cried to the roar of the crowds in the grandstands. The MC wasn't sure, but he thought he heard two identical screeches coming from his right in the middle of the far-off grandstands. It could have been nothing, but if the origins of the screeches had been visible, as well as the cringing group of people surrounding the two, Jared would have quickly deduced that the screams were real.

Yep, you guessed it, Chichi and Bulma were yelling and screaming to their hearts' content (but not to the happiness of everyone around them, heh), each trying to outdo the other in supporting their individual families who were fighting. It wasn't enough that those two were the leaders in the screech contest going on with all the females present in the stands, but they had to butt heads over the position of screech queen itself. (/Winces/ I'm going to go deaf at this point, unless something happens to make them stop and preserve my rapidly deteriorating hearing… Plz oh Kami!!).

But, as Jared could not see the group, he went on. He turned away from those mysterious screeches back to his job, supposing them to be the work of some rabid fangirls (he has no idea. /Winces again/). Continuing, he yelled over the noise of the crowd,

"Everyone, please calm down!"

It was a good thing that Jared had a microphone, for he would not have been heard by the crowd otherwise. Despite the order, however, the audience continued to scream, especially as Thom the cameraman (SP/Readers: HI THOM!!! Thom:/Waves from behind camera/) focused on them.

While the disobedient crowd outside did its work, the Z-senshi was inside the quiet fighter's lounge, waiting for Goku and Gohan to appear. They worried (Vegeta, worry? Nah!) that the two wouldn't able to come because they had used up their forty-eight hours (or rather, _Goku_ had used up their forty-eight hours). How would they be able to compete in the rest of the tournament now, especially if they were disqualified? They would be, if they weren't on the stage with their opponent within a minute. How would they feel, watching from the sidelines as they lost their fighting chance? Exactly as Krillin and Piccolo had felt when they watched Goku, Vegeta, and later Gohan fight Majin Buu, knowing that the fate of the world rested in the hands of these three and those three only. Not a very good feeling, as you can imagine.

So it was to the immense relief of all of them (yes, even Vegeta, the big softie) when Gohan and Goku suddenly flashed into existence, but they were not so happy to see the two accompanying them: the Kaioshin and his assistant, Kibito.

Gohan immediately sat down by Goten and Trunks (who had once again escaped the clutches of their harpy mothers), while Goku turned to Shin and Kibito.

"Thanks, Shin, for convincing King Yemma to let us come back for the tournament, including the rest days!"

Gohan snorted at the comment, but only so Goten, Trunks, and Krillin, who was standing beside them, could hear. He whispered to all three in the same volume of voice, "The Kaioshin more like commanded King Yemma to let us return. As he's the Supreme Kaio, Yemma had no choice but to obey."

The Devil Duo snickered, but Krillin raised his eyebrows. So Shin had _commanded_ King Yemma to let these two return, had he? Why had he done _that_? The little weasel hadn't been around at all when Buu had been let out, nor could Krillin remember being able to sense either his or Kibito's kis during the battle. He shrugged, but he still kept a wary eye, or two, on the Kaioshin and Kibito.

Shin, in answer to Goku's thanks, simply shook his head. "It was my honor to do so, Goku, for both you and Gohan." The "purple rat", as Babidi so eloquently described him, bowed to Goku, then to Gohan. Goku bowed back, and after standing up from his seat, Gohan bowed, too, his guardian angel necklace pendant swinging out from beneath his shirt as he did so. Shin's black eyes widened as he caught sight of it, but offered no comment, only made Kibito bow to Goku and Gohan, as well. What the Kaioshin _did_ say to Gohan was,

"Gohan, I'm sorry, but I won't be able to fight with you today. My job here on Earth is done, thanks to you and your fellow Earthlings. I hope you have a nice stay in the Living world, _kilashiwen_." (1)

The eldest demi-Saiyan merely smirked at the Kaioshin, then inclined his head in acknowledgement. Kibito's face was purple again, but he was stopped from doing anything about this boy's insolence by the Kaioshin himself, once again.

"Come, Kibito. Let's go stop the Raini-jinn from revolting," he said, effectively distracting his servant from the "problem child" standing before them. With a curt nod, Kibito and Shin disappeared from the fighter's lounge, just before the human Killa came in (Phew!).

Disappointingly, Killa was not wearing horribly mismatched clothes. No, these clothes looked new, suggesting to the Demon Trio that he'd bought some new military clothes (Jeez, is that all he ever wears?! Good night, man, have some variation in your life some time! Break free from the crowd!! /Killa ignores/). The Demon Trio could safely assume this as the Devil Duo had dyed _all_ of his military clothes and gear, even. The Son brothers and Briefs child sent each other slightly resentful looks, but cheered up at the next sight.

True to form, although there was absolutely no reason for them to at all, the Satan Gang trooped in. Videl had a look on her face that was absolutely priceless (and which Gohan had the sense to mentally capture as a picture). Gabrielle had an accusing stare that she immediately trained upon Gohan, who miraculously had a gawking expression on his own face, as if seeing the two bizarros following her for the first time. Gabrielle was not fooled, especially as she saw both corners of Gohan's mouth twitch slightly.

The two wackos following Gabrielle and Videl were actually two humans: one a girl, the other a teenage male. The girl was blonde, but sported so much black (marker, was it?) on her eyelids that she almost looked like a raccoon. Almost.

The male, on the other hand, well, it was very, very, very hard to tell what color his hair was, the strands peeking out from behind and below his cap, anyway. It looked to be dyed five different colors, but that wasn't possible, now was it? Nah.

If only seeing wasn't believing. Heh. Too bad for Erasa and Sharpner, as their names were, that seeing was believing.

And laughing.

But only inwardly. The Z-senshi and Killa were straight-faced, although a little shocked (ha! The Trio sure weren't shocked. Neither were we. Muahaha!). Killa even went over to them and engaged in conversation with them, obviously asking what happened, as well was telling them what he had had to go through as well. Gohan became a little bit worried that Gabrielle would tell them who did the pranks, but then Videl's voice drifted over to him and set him at ease.

"Even Gabrielle doesn't know, and she's a psychic."

Gohan saw Gabrielle groan and sympathized with her. Nothing like an unfailing belief in you and your abilities from your friends to drive you batty sometimes (LOL).

They were all distracted at that moment by Jared's voice at last saying, "Thank you, everyone! Now, a quick recap. As some of you may not remember what happened to days ago, in our first round beginning match, Trunks was beaten by Goku in a spectacular match! Trunks seemed to have the advantage in the beginning, but Goku managed to punch him out of the ring after a split-second of so much fantastic action that we missed because of a slight dust storm that occurred at that very moment! It must have been simply awesome!! I can't believe we missed it! (Yeah, well, ya wouldn't have been able to see it anyway, duh)"

Jared continued on in this vein, describing the rest of the fights (see respective chapters for recaps of those fights. I'm too lazy to type it all down, you see.), ending with,

"And finally, in our last match, Gohan was up against Pintar. Pintar was really strutting his stuff, and quite impressively too, but Gohan wasn't fazed! He just waited until Pintar finally attacked him, then defeated him with a single finger into his stomach! Amazing! I'm still awed by the sight just thinking about it!"

Jared paused for a moment, as if savoring the awesome sight, then sighed and resumed his announcing.

"But now, here are our matches for you today! First up, as you can see on the board we've drawn up, is Goku versus Krillin!"

Krillin paled and started sweating heavily, while Goku simply Grinned™ in excitement. Jared's voice continued, unaware of the events going on within the fighter's lounge behind his back.

"The second match consists of Juuhachi versus Killa!"

Eighteen remained indifferent, even as her opponent cast a measuring sideways glance at her.

"After our second match there will be an intermission and a few sideshows for entertainment, then our third match will begin between Majunior and Vegeta!"

Piccolo did nothing, except look at Vegeta out of the corner of his eye, while Vegeta just humphed.

"And finally, our fourth match of the day, Shin versus Gohan!"

Gohan just smirked again, while Goten and Trunks on either side of him bubbled with excitement. Marron, who was clutching her father's clothes, looked curiously at the two boys on the couch with Gohan, but didn't move to join them just yet (Good thing, too. Goten and Trunks would have just chased her away, saying she had cooties. Humph. Mean lil boys.).

"After the fourth match, we will present you with a videotape of what several people think happened at the Cell Games (/Readers can be heard to groan, especially **New Dye**/ SP: /Only smiles mysteriously/)."

There were glances of interest exchanged between the members of the Z-senshi, even as bellows of approval were heard from the enormous crowd outside. Good thing we have front row seats right beside Thom, eh? Hehehehe…

Anyway, the Z-senshi all agreed to stay and watch the videotape, especially Gohan, Goten, and Trunks. Goten and Trunks had, of course, heard about the Cell Games all their lives (heck, Trunks was even alive during that time), and of course wanted to see it in action. Gohan was interested to see how much of the videotape was actually true, or if the humans had just managed to bungle things up as usual, with no offense meant to Krillin, Yamcha, his mother, Bulma, and Gabrielle, of course. It would indeed be very interesting to see (muahaha!).

Of course, they did have to get the fights over with first. That _was _what everybody had come for after all, including us. Duh.

"Now that our agenda is set for today, let's go over the rules! The rules are as follows: No foul play is allowed, such as hitting below the belt, pulling of tails, arms, legs, et cetera. No weapons other than natural ones are permitted, such as swords, scimitars, knives, and so on. If one of the fighters becomes unconscious or lands outside the ring, the other fighter is declared the winner. If both fighters are unconscious or are rung out at the same time, the match is declared a tie and will be judged again at another time by myself or one of my colleagues during the next rest day.

"Also, if a fighter does not turn up for a match within 45 seconds, that match is forfeited and the other fighter is automatically declared the winner. If both fighters do not show up for the match within 45 seconds, they are both disqualified and the tournament will have to go on without them.

"And finally, if a fighter kills his opponent, he automatically loses and is disqualified from the tournament!" Jared at last cried, to Vegeta's unheeded snorts. With a flourish, Jared swept his hand up and pointed it behind him, at the scroll that acted as a "door" to the fighter's lounge.

"For our first match, here are Goku and Krillin!"

Krillin gulped and got up. Goku was already on his feet and Grinning™ at his longtime friend of many years.

"Don't worry, Krillin. I'll go easy on you and make a bit of a fairer fight," the youngest purebred Saiyan told his friend, obviously trying to reassure him. Krillin only managed to flash a strained smile in return, obviously thinking that Goku would have to go _really_ easy on him to even get close to making it a fairer fight. Still, he did manage to choke out a "Thanks, Goku" before he was seized by his nerves again (/An image of Krillin being chase, captured, and dragged off by short frayed "nerves" pops up/ -Readers/muse/authoress ignore-) and clamped up.

"No problem, Krill!" Goku chirped, sounding eerily like Goten as he did. In fact, Goten looked strangely at his father's back as the Saiyan strode out onto the platform and into the spotlight.

Eighteen, as Krillin gave Marron up to her, said to him, "Good luck, Krillin. Don't forget to dodge Goku as he uses his right hook. He'll be taken off guard, which you can use to your advantage."

Krillin nodded, his face dead serious, as dead as his opponent (sorry, couldn't resist, haha). He stooped to hug Marron and receive her wish of luck, then squared his shoulders, and lunged to his destiny.

:-:-:-:

"And here they are! Are the fighters prepared to begin the first match of the second round?" Jared's cry heralded.

Goku nodded, his "warrior" face on in priming for the oncoming battle. Krillin also nodded firmly, some of his nervousness abandoning him (/Movie clip of Krillin running from an angry mob of nerves is played/ -Readers again ignore, but some do laugh and cheer/) in the imminent onslaught of the fight. Krillin was as ready as ready could get, even with all those danged butterflies in his breadbasket, stealing his breakfast out from in him. Mean butterflies. Too lazy to get their own food, the little thieves. /Mutters/

"Then begin!"

:-:-:-:

**Round Two, Match One**

Although both Goku and Krillin slid into their stances, they didn't move. They also ignored the announcer, who was giving out the background information on both fighters and their previous matches in the WMAT. It was not to the knowledge of the announcer (or me, either, sorry) if these two had ever fought against each other in the tournaments that they had competed in, which was surprising considering the number that they had entered. This fact only served to make this match all the sweeter.

The current fighters also paid no heed to the cheers and jeers of the audience standing/sitting in the grandstands, and they did not hear (or see) the group of rather enthusiastic people gathered around behind Thom the cameraman, cheering lustily. They only saw the other one as their world had shrunk only to the size of the platform in width and length. As for their height of their world, well, the sky was the limit. No, wait, outer space was the limit. Gotta remember that these guys can fly. Jeez.

Finally, Goku, getting tired of waiting for precisely 5.0001 seconds, surged toward Krillin, his speed remarkably less than that of when he was fighting against Majin Buu, as promised. Having anticipated this action long ago (5.0001 seconds ago is a long time, apparently, in fights, heh), Krillin was ready for him and dodged nimbly out of the way of his opponent's right hook, as Eighteen had suggested to him. he raced around behind Goku and launched a counter-attack while Goku still had his back turned. The Saiyan turned quickly and blocked the kick and leaped into the air as Krillin jumped back and attempted to floor-kick him. Goku landed and started barreling forward in his offense, punching, kicking, tripping, doing every attack without using ki attacks or any other forms of ki, such as flying, leaping too high, et cetera. Krillin dodged, blocked, ducked, and retaliated as best as he could, actually making Goku step back almost to the edge one time with a very ferocious attack. However, Goku recovered, and the battle went on.

Finally, Krillin got tired, and his action became slower, and slower, with Goku slowing down with those actions, until finally, Krillin could barely dodge any of Goku's punches. Goku seemed to realize this and with a swift step and a jump kick, he roundhouse kicked Krillin, knocking him to the ground and actually skidding over the tiles, stopping only five decimeters from the edge. There Krillin rested, while Jared walked over to him and checked his pulse.

"Krillin's still conscious, so this means I am to start the count! One!"

But it was a foregone conclusion, as Jared counted up to ten, that Krillin was done. The fight was a brilliantly valiant effort on Krillin's part, and had managed to last for a full forty-five minutes. Considering whom Krillin was fighting against, that was awesome. Somebody needs to give Krillin a medal here, folks! (/Several people march over, pin a medal on Krillin's shirt, march away/ SP: Thank you! /Waves after them/)

Anyway, like I was saying, it was a foregone conclusion from the beginning of the match, much like the fight between Shin and Dabura, only the one who was expected to win _is_ winning, in this case. Muahaha.

At "Seven!", Krillin started to stir again, and as "Eight!" came, Krillin tried to sit up, but as "Nine!" passed, Krillin was on his hands and his knees. A long pause before "TEN!" came, and Krillin still was not on his feet. In fact, he wobbled a bit, then collapsed again, his ki all used up in the demanding physical activity of fighting against Son Goku.

"TEN! Ohh, and Krillin almost makes it but collapses at the last moment! Goku is the winner! What a great effort by Krillin in his bid to win the fight! Goku was too strong for him, however, and the twice-former champion of the WMAT is on his way to securing the championship title for a third time! Wow!"

Goku walked over to Krillin and helped him up. Krillin grinned weakly at his friend as the latter helped him off the tiled arena.

"I knew… you would… be… too strong… for me… Goku," Krillin panted, earning a bright Grin™ from Goku himself.

"Aw, come on, Krillin, you were fighting pretty good yourself! And you haven't fought since the Cell Games, right?" Goku retorted, adjusting Krillin's arm over his shoulder a bit more securely.

Krillin managed to nod, and the rest of the short journey to the fighter's lounge was completed in comfortable silence, not even broken by the slight smile Eighteen gave her husband as she and Killa walked by for their fight. Krillin grinned back and silently wished her luck, not that she needed it, as he couldn't get up the energy to actually speak. Eighteen seemed to understand, however, for she nodded as slightly as she had smiled. She looked toward the lounge, as did Krillin, where they both found Marron standing, Gohan standing protectively behind her. They both smiled, then Eighteen turned and walked the rest of the way to the arena, where Killa and Jared, and the world, were waiting.

:-:-:-:

**Round Two, Match Two**

"And begin!" came the call. Instantly Killa rushed forward, expecting Eighteen to cringe away from his attack. But she only crouched into a strange fighting stance and waited for him, no emotion in her blue eyes. As Killa pounded forward, she stood her ground, waiting for the event that would ultimately result in someone's world falling to ruin.

:-:-:-:

Meanwhile, as the second fight was going on, the Demon Trio had their heads together and were giggling at something, but what, the Z-senshi could not imagine. Krillin, who had been set on the couch opposite of the Demon Trio, had Marron close by him. He could see the Demon Trio was talking, but he couldn't quite make out what they were saying. They must be using mind-speech, for their voices were entirely too low for them to be able to hear. Well, they were Saiyans, so they could probably hear themselves talk. Oh well. Whatever it was, Krillin could only hope that he wasn't the topic of it.

:-:-:-:

(1) _Kilashiwen_—means "delinquent". It's one of Gohan's many nicknames up there in the Otherworld, among many other things: "youngling/_lokak_", "that darn prankster", and "Oh no! Not the _gigasha_, the dreaded sword-bearing rule-breaker! Run for your lives before he pranks you!". LOL. The Supreme Kaio knows this particular nickname because King Yemma, Baba, and the blue ogres all call him that. Heh. Gohan's popular, that's all I can say, LOL!

:-:-:-:

A/n: :) How's that for a bit of a cliffhanger?

Nice sized chapter this time, ten pages and over 4,500 words. Very cool. I hope you guys enjoyed this chap! Going to see what I can do about the next one! Maybe I'll have the rest of the second match, the sideshows (see bottom of a/n about this one), and the beginning and middle of the third match in the next chapter, and then wrap things up for the second round in the chapter after that. How does that sound? All right? Or do you guys just want to hurry up and see what the videotape's all about? Hmm…

Onto the reviews!

:-:-:-:

**General Responses to Reviews** (got another long list of questions from **New Dye **to answer again... Brace yourselves! Here I go!!)

1) Yep, you got it right for Erasa, Sharpner, and Killa. YAY! I'm especially happy you got Killa. No one else has!!

2) Patience, that was only the _first_ rest day after all...

Hercule— YES!!!

Videl— yeah, I suppose...

Chichi— good idea! Thanx!

Shin— he has more respect for people!! More people being Gohan!! ;)

Kibito— MOST DEFINITELY!!

The person that played the fake video of Cell's defeat by Hercule— huh?! There _is_ no person who played that video in this story!! What are you talking about?! /Majorly confused/

Jared (ha! You misspelled his name! Nyah na!)— hmm... an interesting idea... Actually, I don't mind—Goku _was_ a great fighter in the old WMAT days... the _really_ old WMAT days, that is. Heh.

Goku—OH YESSSSSS!!!! Expect this prank, baby!

3) Duh! It was the first rest day! I took your advice and am fillin' her up, baby!! Yeah!

4) No, absolutely NOT!!! I _hate_ Uub! He made Goku abandon his family, the uber-brat! Although it was Goku's fault too...

5) Noo... just because the tournament's over doesn't mean Gohan stops being Goten's guardian angel!!!

I'm not writing a sequel!! No way! I refuse!!

Of course I will!

GT Questions) You're asking me these questions **_why?!_**

(Side note to **New Dye**— "You... you read **KK: GSW **and **DH** (you know them) too?! Why don't you ever review?!" O.O "I... I love your reviews (filled abundantly with questions though they are)! Must...have...your...reviews!!" /Grabs onto **ND**/ "R-review!!"

"I have no idea when I'm going to update **DH**. When Autumn feels up to it, I presume?" /Shrugs/)

Triple 1.1 & 1.2) Sue FF(dot)net for their ever-increasing difficulties in dealing with reviews. Until you win, I suggest putting a period between each "one" and leave it at that. /Sighs in a frustrated way and shakes head/

Triple 1.3) I have no idea how... /Shakes head again/ (end of list)

6) I'm glad everyone liked my pranks! But I agree with some of you that the spider prank definitely was better. But, hey! I was writing on short notice! I'm rather proud of myself! Next time, though, I would like some prank ideas before I write the next rest day. Help me out here! Plz?

:-:-:-:

Thanks to **New Dye** (twice), **Marshmellow13Dragon**, **hi** (and **Night-Owl123**), **Tiara Shin**, and **DBZ Chick1** for my supply of reviews. Love ya!

So! The second round of the tournament is under way, despite what I kept hinting, haha! That was just to throw you guys off track, although a few of you guys were very tenacious in your convictions… Oh well! At least you know that Goku beat Krillin, and that the Demon Trio is planning _more_ pranks! Will those three _ever_ give up (NO! That'd just take the _fun_ out of this fanfic!)?!

Like I said, if you skipped my review responses (which is perfectly all right I assure you. I skip them in other fics too, if they don't have my answer in them LOL), I need some help with prank ideas! It doesn't matter if those ideas are so lame you think you'd embarrass yourself by mentioning them, I might be able to get creative with those! I—just—need—_ideas_!! I'm no good (at least not on the spot off the top of my head) at coming up with viable pranks, although those Crazy Color Scheme pranks sure were something (at least to me. I'm not sure about you guys tho. /Shrugs/)! LOL!

I also need some ideas about the sideshows that are going to be performed in the intermission between the second and third matches. I have only really very vague ideas about what I'm going to do, but they are so vague I can't even think them out. So… you get the idea. Please help!!

Look, instead of "got milk?", got ideas? :) Thanks in advance!!

_Sinon!_ (My way of saying "bye!" from now on—don't be surprised if I use it again)

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.


	33. Chapter the Thirty Second: Intermission

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-second

Disclaimer: Me? Own Dragonball Z? Hey! That rhymed! Hahaha! /Sobers down suddenly/ No, I don't own.

Disclaimer Two: Chapter the Twenty-seventh, please.

A/n: Warning: Chapter Shortness! ;)

:-:-:-:

Last time, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_"And begin!" came the call. Instantly Killa rushed forward, expecting Eighteen to cringe away from his attack. But she only crouched into a strange fighting stance and waited for him, no emotion in her blue eyes. As Killa pounded forward, she stood her ground, waiting for the event that would ultimately result in someone's world falling to ruin._

_:-:-:-:_

_They must be using mind-speech, for their voices were entirely too low for them to be able to hear. Well, they were Saiyans, so they could probably hear themselves talk. Oh well. Whatever it was, Krillin could only hope that he wasn't the topic of it._

:-:-:-:

As Killa came on, Juuhachi patiently waited, stood as still as a statue in front of the train that was Killa. It took forever for him to come in range, but that was only to be expected: he was a human after all. But couldn't these humans be a lot faster sometimes?

Even as Killa was speeding towards his opponent, he was studying her reaction, her stance, the way she was simply standing there as if she had not a care in the world, and the facial expression she had on. He garnered very little information from her, and the information he _did_ was not enough to help him in any way. So he rushed on, past the group of readers, muses, and the authoress sitting invisibly and soundlessly behind Thomas the cameraman, past Jared, past thousands of people in the audience, to his opponent.

Jared was watching the match intently, trying to see which of the fighters showed more promise to win the fight. From he had seen from these fighters' individual fights, they were both excellent fighters, but Juuhachi had shown that she was capable of a lot of speed against Goten. This might prove instrumental (or not, who knew) against Killa, who was slower but had a lot of endurance. Juuhachi had some endurance as well, but as her fight against Goten hadn't lasted as long as Killa's did, Jared couldn't say if her stamina was up to Killa's extremely high par (you bet it is!).

It was looking to be a good fight, then.

Krillin, after watching the Demon Trio do the "whisper, whisper" ritual demi-Saiyan style, turned to his wife's fight. He accepted a Senzu bean from Goku (who had IT'd to Kame Island to get them), and got up, feeling very much like himself again. His daughter Marron followed him as he walked over to the door-scroll and wedged himself between Piccolo and Goku. Marron sat herself on the tiles before her father's legs, sitting on his feet as a result. Krillin only smiled at his blonde daughter's upturned face, then returned to watching his wife fight.

Killa was almost in front of his opponent now, and then the battle would start. The military man still had too little information to go on, but he was expecting Juuhachi's counteraction to his attack to reveal more. Now he was in front of her and about to punch her.

_Uhh! Hrah! Ohrr! Thunk!_ Only these four sounds followed, and all of them were caused by one fighter. The first three sounds were emitted from this fighter's mouth involuntarily, while the fourth, also an involuntary sound, was caused by this fighter's body landing on the tiled arena. The other fighter drew away and stood offside while the MC and the audience all around these two fighters sat or stood stunned.

All except for a band of people far off in the vast sea of more people, which was clapping and cheering and yelling, "Good job, Eighteen!" (Can ya guess? Juuhachi plushy if you do!)

Slowly, the other people that made up the huge ocean of humanity followed the lead of the tiny minority (which was made up of only five people if I've counted correctly O.o) and started clapping as well. They also rooted, as well, and stamped, and otherwise supported Juuhachi and Killa, but mostly Juuhachi.

"Juu-hah-chi! Juu-hah-chi!" someone started chanting. The audience quickly picked up on this trend, for once, and soon it was if the whole world was shouting for Eighteen, formerly Android Eighteen (1). Very nice.

Jared shook himself roughly out of his daze, helped by one of the monks, Hub (remember him?). Jared thanked Hub and stepped up onto the platform, walking over to the unmoving form of the fighter Killa still on the stage.

"Aaaanndd… Killa is out cold! After only three moves, Juuhachi is the winner!"

Eighteen nodded and walked off of the ring back to her family and friends. Marron greeted her with wide arms and a smile. Krillin grinned at her and said,

"Nice going, honey."

Goku was exuberant in his response to her high-class performance.

"Very nice, Eighteen! The knee to Killa's gut, the double-fisted smash down on his neck, and the final open-handed punch to his forehead combination was great (And finally we saw what Eighteen did to Killa to KO him! Ahaha! Aren't I so mean? :P)! Where'd you learn it?" (SP: Goku… /Hoods eyes in annoyance/)

Eighteen looked stoically at Goku, then replied in a voice that still was not quite human, "I didn't learn it anywhere, Gokou. I made it up on the spot. Now if you'll excuse me, I would like to get inside for the intermission. I'm a little hot." (Hot enough to melt, 18?)

Goku and Krillin quickly dispersed and Eighteen stalked into the lounge. She saw Gohan give her a thumbs-up and nodded to him before turning and finding a cushioned bench near one of the rectangular windows where she and Marron could sit. She sat on it lightly, as if the bench couldn't take her weight otherwise, and helped her daughter onto the bench as well.

Jared outside had adjourned the World Convention for the intermission after seeing off the team of monks which was bundling Killa off to the hospital. After he announced it was intermission and that it would last about an hour and a half. Jared went into the fighter's lounge.

"Hello, everyone! While we're doing the intermission, let's talk about the tournament day after tomorrow. We will hold the semifinals between the winners of the quarterfinals, which is this round, and the finals on the same day. During this day, we will hold exhibition matches between the semifinals and the finals. These exhibition matches will be between all the fighters who were eliminated, not the winners, in the course of the tournament, and will only last up to thirty minutes per fight, giving the winners up to three and a half hours to rest before the finals. If the exhibition matches end earlier than expected, the audience will be asked to recess again and assemble when the three and a half hours are up. Is this understood?" Jared asked.

"What if the winners don't need three and a half hours to rest? What then?" Goku, unsurprisingly, asked.

Jared looked up and sort of grimaced at Goku. Figures he'd ask that question. "Then the winners will have to do _something_ to entertain themselves, such as eat, warm up for the finals…"

Smiling at Goku's predictable reaction of joy at the word "eat", Jared continued.

"The other fights, the ones that are still alive, that is (everyone sweatdropped, except for the kids) have been or will be notified of this arrangement, and the matches as they stand now are—"

A monk, taking his cue, stepped out of the background into the light. Videl and the Satan gang gave him surprised looks, but Zouri, as the monk was hailed, did not seem to notice.

Zouri said, "The first match will be between Trunks and Hercule."

Mutters were head at this proclamation, among them a sharp complaint of "Why do _I_ have to be the one to fight him?", plainly made by Trunks. The monk waited for these mutterings to go down before continuing.

"The second match is Goten versus Videl."

Videl blinked and looked over at the orange-and-blue clad kid bouncing up and down on his couch. She had to fight _that_ kid? Well…okay. He _had_ fought well against Juuhachi, and that woman had knocked Killa down flat. Maybe it wasn't so bad a thing that these were only exhibition matches. Videl sweatdropped at the thought.

"Pintar is up against Kibito in the third match, and Krillin is paired with Killa for the fourth fight. The fifth and sixth matches still have to be determined by the rest of the quarterfinals and the semifinals, which will occur in two days," finished Zouri. Jared thanked the monk, who rolled up his scroll, bowed, and shuffled away.

"So there you have it! if there is anything else that you fighters have, any questions or problems, feel free to just walk up to me and tell me. I'll answer your questions and problems as quickly as possible," Jared said.

A voice spoke up from one of the couches. It was Gohan, and he was about to point out a very critical quandary. "I have a problem. The person I'm supposed to fight, Shin, he left with Kibito. I saw them both disappear about an hour or two ago. I don't think they're coming back." His statement was confirmed by nods from several other people, all of them members of Earth's Special Forces.

Jared paled considerably. "Uhh," he stuttered. "That _is_ a problem. Thank you, uh, Gohan. We'll take care of that right away."

"Does this mean that I don't have to show up for my match when it comes around? There won't be a fight, so…" Gohan asked. The _kilashiwen_ strikes again, for we all know that the answer is…

"Yes, you do have to appear before the audience. You'll only have to wait for forty-five seconds before you can go, but you do have to make an appearance," Jared told him sternly. Gohan snapped his fingers and said, in return, "Darn."

While Jared made his excuses and dashed away, Krillin turned to Gohan.

"Why don't you want to go out there, Gohan? I'd at least think you'd want to girls to look at you, bro," he teased.

Gohan looked over at Krillin and grimaced. "That's the problem," he said. It was all he had to say for Krillin to understand. The black-haired ex-monk raised his eyebrows and sat back while everyone around them looked at Gohan. It wasn't for long, however, as a certain person's stomach rumbled. Before Goku even had to open his mouth, all of the members of the Z-senshi had gotten up and were heading for the back door. This meant Goku was close to being left along if he didn't move it, so he jumped up and ran out the door to follow his friends, and, more importantly, his nose.

:-:-:-:

They returned an hour and five minutes later to see that almost half the audience was back already, and more people were filling up the seats even as the Z-senshi was getting comfortable themselves. In only twenty minutes, the stadium was full again, and even Jared and the monks were around. However, no one seemed to want to officially restart the tournament until the time was supposed to be up.

The Satan gang limped their way in (not literally, though, don't worry), Erasa still with her heavily markered eyelids, and Sharpner with, well, a bit of an improvement. Some blonde was showing through, which only served to make the sight of his hair all the weirder, but oddly enough, the boy seemed to like it. O.o (SP: Oh, **New Dye**! **:D**). They just settled in when Jared stepped up onto the arena and called to the already quiet audience,

"The intermission is now officially over!"

:-:-:-:

**Round Two, Match Three**

Vegeta and Piccolo. The two most evil people the Earth had ever seen pre-Frieza, and both had turned a least mostly to the good side. Mostly. Now, here on that very same planet that had so humbled (SP: Vegeta? _Humble?_ /Disbelieving/) them both, they were being given the chance to… _let out a few of their frustrations_, so to speak. Heh. (/Authoress sweatdrops/)

Guess what that means? /Grins evilly/

:-:-:-:

(1) Anybody know the Japanese translation for Android Eighteen is? I think it's something Juuhachinounigen or something like that. Help?

:-:-:-:

A/n: /Puts on sunglasses and plays it cool/ Peace, baby. /Puts up two fingers in peace gesture/

Aline: /Raises eyebrow/ Exactly_ what_ are you doing, authoress?

SP: Being evil. /Grins amiably at protesting readers pounding on the windows and door of her office/

Aline: /Considers/ …

Can I join?

SP: Sure. /Looks™ at muse, whom Looks™ back/

Both: /Grin evilly/

:-:-:-:

**General Responses to Reviews **(**New Dye**, _again_. /Mock-groans/ And a few new readers, too! Bwa ha ha ha ha!! /Coughs/ Ahem.)

**0) **Actually, I think Gohan _is_ a delinquent. He's not supposed to go visit his little brother each and every day, but he does, does he not? And also he goes to HFIL to prank the people (coughcoughCELLFRIEZAETCcoughcough) down in there, and no one's supposed to go to HFIL if they aren't sent there!! A third thing, he goes to other places in Otherworld, and that's not allowed for the same reason as HFIL. So, yes, Gohan _is _a _kilashiwen_. OK? LOL!

**1)** I'm not telling you that!

**2a)**,** 2b)** &** 2c) **Why don't you tell me? /Blinks innocently/

**-3- **Uh, hello? **Dye**? The reason Krillin didn't use any ki attacks is because they were before a HUGE world audience, and they all agreed that they wouldn't use those anymore, as it was disastrous to not only the arena and stadium, but also to the Z-senshi's privacy and good name. DUH! Jeez...

**-4-** Ah, but Videl _didn't_ win that fight against Killa. _He_ was the one who defeated _her_, not the other way around. Like.

**-5- **What makes you think that Vegeta won't defeat Gohan?

**-6- **Yes, it does seem likely that Goku would do that with his money if he wins, doesn't it? As for Gohan... Answering the real questions now.

**3) **_If_ Gohan wins, both choices seem likely, although a) is probably more accurate.

**6)** I have no idea why you're asking me that question. You should know the answer to that one. Sheesh!

**7)** Maybe, maybe not.

**8)** Uh, doesn't look like it. Sorry!

**9)** Ooh, good one! Hehehe...

**10)** Looks like a) to me. You did get me thinking on e) though. Cool!

**-11-** Oh, my gosh! You just reminded me that I didn't put in anything for the intermission! Yikes! Oh well, I'll have to put in something later. Thanx!

**-12-** Yeah, well, I already explained about the "delinquent" name, but the only one who calls Gohan "youngling" is Baba, and she's over five or six hundred years old. Yeah. Gohan doesn't like it either... /Hears grumbling in background/ Yeah. :D

/Looks up/ Whew, you got a lotta questions here, girlfriend. /Shakes head/

Thanks to everyone for their reviews! Sorry I didn't answer them (poor, poor **M13D**, she has to go the dentist with the scary monkeys... Yikes! /Hides/)

:-:-:-:

**Prank Ideas Offered So Far By Reviewers**

1) Play it on Vegeta. (hmm...)

2) See list made by **New Dye** last chapter (some are Shin, Goku, Chichi, Hercule...)

3) Play it on Piccolo. (good one, ne?)

Very nice, but I need more!!! Please?

:-:-:-:

Thanks to **miroku-has-darkness** (twice), **Axelalx**,** Neptunes Tsunami**, **DBZ Chick1**, **New Dye** (twice), **ssj-vash** (nice name!), **Marshmellow13Dragon**, and **Night-Owl123** for their excellent reviews! I now have OVER 250 reviews! YAY!! :)

Aha! Juuhachi, as expected, beats Killa easily, for all that that human beat Videl with a bit of a struggle, and the whole world cheers for her! Cool! Ah! But during the intermission, several problems are encountered! Will they be cleared up before the exhibition matches? Let's hope so! Ah, but what will happen between Vegeta and Piccolo, aka Majunior? Let's find out, in the next **Vigilante Angel**! Bwa ha ha ha ha! /Coughs again/ Arghh! /Clutches throat/

School tomorrow… Bleagh… Exams too… Double bleagh… Not really any time for updates… Triple bleagh… My dog wants me to play with her with her _very_ chewed up ball… OK! :D

Well, Aline and I are off to be evil! Good luck to everybody when they go back to school! _Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**.Enjoy.

(SP: Happy belated New Years everybody! It's 2005 already!! Jeesh!)

_Updated 01.02.05_


	34. Chapter the Thirty Third: Provocation

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-third

Disclaimer: As I do not own anything but the laptop I type on, my dog, and all my other mundane possessions, such as books and manga, so how can you possibly think that I could ever, _ever_ own Dragonball Z? Nevertheless, I, urged by all those dratted lawyers from FUNimation, do hereby declare that DBZ is not mine. /Sighs dramatically/

Disclaimer Two: "To get to Disclaimer Two, please take the **AASN** elevator marked 'Vigilante Angel' and press the button that says 'Chapter the Twenty-seventh'. Thank you."

A/n: I need… reviews. For my second **Kakkhan **fic in the **Kakkhan **trilogy. Of course, you do need to read the first fic, **Kakkhan: Giendonese Saiyan Warrior**, before reading the first chap of the second one, **Kakkhan: Immortal Saiyan Z Fighter**, as it's called. It's actually supposed to be **Kakkhan: Immortal Saiyan Z-fighter**, but FF . net will not accept dashes in hyper links, as per fussy usual, so I was forced to put a space between the **Z **and **fighter**, thus making it quite different from my original title. Oh well. /Shrugs/ FF . net is as FF . net is; the only thing I can do is accept it and move on.

REVIEW PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I don't care if it's the first fic or the second one, but I would much prefer the second one. I've only got one review so far, last time I checked, but I never know…

Other than that, enjoy!

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Vegeta and Piccolo. The two most evil people the Earth had ever seen pre-Frieza, and both had turned at least mostly to the good side. Mostly. Now, here on that very same planet that had so humbled (SP: Vegeta? _Humble?_ /Disbelieving/) them both, they were being given the chance to… _let out a few of their frustrations_, so to speak. Heh. (/Authoress sweatdrops/)_

_Guess what that means? /Grins evilly/_

:-:-:-:

Vegeta and Piccolo said nothing to each other as they walked side-by-side up the tiled walkway up the stage. Jared was inwardly cringing at the sight of the two walking towards him, for he could remember them both from the Cell Games, and Majunior from previous tournaments. From what he had seen (but not really heard) of the short one, he had an explosive temper (displayed at the Cell Games), a penchant for not listening to others (shown two days ago), and a thirst to prove himself, all traits that were a deadly combination with each other, and painful to boot.

Poor, poor Majunior.

Well, Majunior had proven _himself_ to a pretty powerful force to reckon with, as was shown in previous tournaments and earlier this week. But… well, he just had to hope that Majunior wouldn't fare too badly against… Vegeta, his name was (SP: Oh my gosh, Vegeta's been trying so hard to be known, and Jared doesn't even remember it at first! How ironic).

By this time, both Majunior and Vegeta were up on the stage and eyeing each other warily. Er, bad choice of words. Vegeta was looking at Piccolo with barely concealed glee in every fiber of his being. Piccolo was coldly measuring Vegeta up and down, while inside he was quaking in his carrot-reminiscent shoes (SP: They really do look like carrots, all wrinkled, and the same color too!). But Piccolo was a Namekian, and Namekians (the warrior ones, anyway) did not show fear.

That much.

Anyhow, these two were on the stage, and the play was about to begin. Oh, wait, never mind, it already did.

"And, start!" was the bellow (SP: Yay! Something else besides "And begin!" Whee!). Vegeta and Piccolo slid into their stances as Act I of Vegeta's Triumph and Piccolo's Third Downfall (SP: or something like that) began. (SP: Sheesh, what a bad title).

At first, neither of them moved. Then a false start from Vegeta started Piccolo off, and the Namekian flew towards the Saiyan prince. Vegeta braced himself, and—

:-:-:-:

(SP: /Evil grin/)

:-:-:-:

The Z-senshi watched the fight with wide eyes. Vegeta was obviously the one in control of the fight, but Piccolo could not be faulted for lack of competition. Quite the opposite, actually. However, these two, being the battle-hardened warriors they were, had a lot of experience, and with experience comes wisdom, and after wisdom follows craftiness. Vegeta may not look and/or act like the type to possess the wisdom of experience, but he certainly was cunning, a trait born from being both the Prince of Saiyans and one of Frieza's, erm, _higher-ranked_ warriors in matters of the mind, so to speak.

Piccolo had wisdom from three different sources. He had his own recollections, the almost-infinite knowledge of Kami (SP: It's "almost-infinite" because Dende has all the infinite knowledge that he needs, ha!), and the mind of Nails, in easy access from any battle he needed them for. This battle may be it, the one where Piccolo might actually get to use some of the power obtained through the two fusions he had done all those years ago.

He had not been able to contribute those powers to the fight against Cell, although he'd certainly tried, and perhaps even succeeded. It really depended upon whose point of view it was, for people other than Piccolo would probably say that he was a big factor in defeating Cell, distracting the "tin can" so that Gohan could overcome him and his blasted Kamehameha. Piccolo wasn't one of those people, predictably enough, though he was sure Gohan was.

Anyway, we're getting off topic again. Vegeta was in control, but Piccolo wasn't giving up. and the Z-senshi was looking on with wide eyes once more, as more surprising events played out before them. and who could blame them? They had all expected Vegeta to instantly blow away the Namekian and then the match would be over. But it seemed that Vegeta wanted a challenge after all, and Piccolo was it. Oh, yes, he certainly was it.

Gohan, of course, was nonplussed. He knew Vegeta was holding back, and knew how much of an effort it was to hold all that energy of SS3 back. He also knew that Piccolo knew Vegeta was holding back, and the Namekian was taking full advantage of it (SP: Being a mind empath really rocks, doesn't it?). Soon, though, Vegeta would start to let loose some of his strength, and then, then would Piccolo's struggle really begin. But Piccolo could take care of himself, and would last over two minutes, before graciously allowing himself to be defeated, either by KO, the count, which was most likely, or ring out, which was the second likeliest outcome. But not before he got all of the stress he'd accumulated from the events of the Majin Buu Battle, out, although meditation could have done that same thing.

Maybe Piccolo just hadn't wanted to meditate. Maybe he'd just liked the idea that he could actually fight, instead of sitting back on his haunches and watching others fight for him against an opponent that he could possibly beat any day, and feeling helpless. Meditation could not necessarily get rid of that feeling, not like a fight could. After all, meditation was a storage of feelings, not a clearance of them. The memory of being helpless would always be there, but doing something active about it was, in some ways and in some situations, better than being passive.

Either that or Piccolo just like fighting itself, and decided to do that instead of meditate. Maybe. Gohan shrugged. Maybe not.

At that moment, the only demi-Saiyan dead was sitting next to Marron, whom had been placed by her mother, Eighteen, onto the very seat next to him. The original Devil Duo, Goten and Trunks, were up at the windows, watching, and commenting on, the fight.

"Yeah, Dad, punch his lights out!"

"Come on, Mr. Piccolo, you can do it! Yeah, that's it! Keep going, keep going, keep going, going, go…"

Gohan glanced outside and saw that Piccolo and Vegeta were standing in a knuckle-lock much like in Videl and Killa's fight, but Vegeta, even as Gohan was watching, threw Piccolo off and started in on him, throwing in punches in a flurry too fast to see. Proof: Jared could only count five punches when actually eleven had taken place, and ten punches when twenty-six was the actual count (SP: Freaky! Vegeta, calm down, you veg-head!). Gohan smirked as Piccolo was driven back to the center of the ring before the Namekian got a firm foothold and was able to resist once more.

Turning away, Gohan glanced at Marron, who was looking at the fight, but didn't appear to be interested in it. _This one is not going to be a fighter, that's for sure,_ Gohan thought. _Then again, I might be wrong. looking at me when I was her age, no one could have guessed that I'd grow up to be the strongest warrior on Earth and in Upper Heaven_, he contradicted himself ruefully. _So I don't know. I'll keep an eye on this one, see what she turns out to be._

The demi-Saiyan smiled at Marron when she turned her blonde head up to him, and received a very cute grin in return. They turned back to the fight, but seconds later, Marron was giggling and squirming. The Z-senshi looked in the direction of the disturbance and saw what it was about. Smiles spread across the faces of the Z-senshi (and of the Satan Gang, as they, too, looked over) as they beheld Gohan tickling Marron, gently of course, and letting up when the half-android needed a break.

A loud _thud _swiftly distracted the Z-senshi from Gohan and Marron, just in time to see Piccolo go sailing across the arena at a nice velocity of twenty-two kilometers per our and simply slam into the tiles of the ring, miraculously not making a dent. Guess Piccolo's making good on his promise to Jared not to break it. Think he's applying a bit of Kami's magic to make the arena tiles indestructible? /Tilts head thoughtfully/ -Shrugs-

Piccolo lay where he fell, all bloody—

Well, maybe not bloody, but certainly beaten up, that's for sure. Jared ran over to Piccolo to check his pulse, only to have a tiny bit of difficulty finding it. Silly announcer, doesn't he know that Piccolo's an alien? Apparently not. Oh well.

Anyway, Piccolo was declared unconscious, and Vegeta was the proud winner of his very own quarterfinal match. How sweet (SP: I've been hanging around Juuhachi for the last few days, can ya tell? Heh. /Sweatdrops/ She's a nice lady though).

Wait a minute! WAIT ONE BLEEDING MINUTE IN HFIL! Where do I come off thinking that you, my dear readers, will be content knowing that Vegeta threw Piccolo onto the tiles and won after a decidedly fierce battle? Where did I get that positively ridiculous idea?

…

The facts that I'm the authoress of this little ficcy and therefore can think/do whatever I want may or may not be important in my reasoning… :D

:-:-:-:

SP: Well, all I can say is, that ending with Piccolo being knocked unconscious, it's fake. Totally fake, I'm telling ya! Piccolo would never, ever let something like that happen to him so easily! Muahaha! /Coughs/ Darn it, I gotta stop laughing evilly like that all the time. Heh.

…

Fine, fine, let's get to the real fighting action now… /Sighs dramatically again/

:-:-:-:

At first, neither of them moved. Then a false start from Vegeta started Piccolo off, and the Namekian flew towards the Saiyan prince. Vegeta braced himself, and—

Piccolo smashed straight onto Vegeta's diagonally crossed arms. The force of Piccolo's attack was nothing that Vegeta couldn't handle, but it was a marginal surprise that the Namekian could even muster up this much, especially as he'd never been this forceful during their occasional spars. It could be that they were fighting in front of the whole world, but somehow Vegeta didn't think that was it. Well, whatever it was, the Namekian would need a lot of it to make this fight worthwhile.

Vegeta thrust Piccolo back and lunged forward with a retaliatory attack of his own. Piccolo dodged it and jumped nimbly over Vegeta's leg as the Saiyan tried to sweep his opponent's legs out from under him with a floor kick. Vegeta used his momentum to spin on his bent leg and used that same leg to propel himself upward onto his outstretched leg so that he was standing again. Right after he was back on his feet, Piccolo launched at him, causing the Saiyan prince to fall back.

The fallback was only a diversion for Piccolo, however, and Vegeta used Piccolo's momentum to his advantage, performing a karate side-kick that made Piccolo fly ungracefully across the ring. Piccolo recovered quickly, however, putting down his feet and dragging them to stop his momentum. Something that was not easy to do, as he was going quite a few kilometers per hour and had to slow down a lot in about two seconds before he went over the edge. However, Piccolo had the advantage of ki, and managed to slide merely to the edge of the platform, where he hung for a singular moment of time, motionless on the line between the arena tiles and the grass, dignity and embarrassment, heaven and hell.

Then Piccolo fell forward onto the tips of his feet, bent almost in two, and shot off to meet an already rampaging Vegeta for one of the greatest battles of his life, next to Goku's, of course.

They met in the middle, their fists colliding, falling into a knuckle-lock. Piccolo seized the opportunity to swing the fight his way and started straining against Vegeta enthusiastically. Before Vegeta could recover, the Namekian pushed the surprised Saiyan into his "territory", closer to the end of the arena. He placed Vegeta in almost the same position that Piccolo himself had been in only moments before, but Vegeta was quick, too quick, and he threw Piccolo off by separating his fists and thrusting hard as he did it. As Piccolo staggered back, Vegeta charged, punching Piccolo too fast for the Namekian to block, dodge, or even recuperate from.

Vegeta punched him thirty-seven times in as many seconds, stunning the world and Jared as they could not count exactly how many punches happened, only seeing fifteen out of the actual thirty-seven, achieving a disappointing forty-one percent on their test of accuracy. Forty-one percent meant that "our humans", as the authoress so hesitates to call them, were utter and complete failures in the art of seeing super-powered beings fight.

But then again, they started failing that test a long time ago, when Krillin was a kid, and fighting against Jackie Chun. Why should they suddenly have a spike of clarity now?

Anyway, Piccolo finally put his feet down on the tiles once more and stiffened his whole body, so when Vegeta punched him a thirty-eighth time, Piccolo didn't sink before the all-mighty fist of justice (SP: Ha!). The Saiyan stepped back, jarred, and Piccolo quickly followed up with the beginnings of his own drive, but Vegeta, as hasty as ever, nipped the pressure in the bud. He captured Piccolo's fist and used the momentum, once again, to smash his fist down on the Namekian's head with a loud _thud_, and once his prey was stunned, threw him across to the opposite side of the ring. The ring, graciously enough, sank a little under Piccolo's force, but it did not break. It didn't even groan. It just sank, then bounced back up in an imperceptible movement that positively reeked of Kami's magic.

Go Piccolo.

For a few seconds, it appeared as though Piccolo was unconscious. Jared even started to move, undoubtedly to check on Piccolo's vital stats, before a twitch of long green fingers was seen by said announcer. Vegeta saw it, too, but he knew by the severe cutback of Piccolo's normally vibrant ki levels that Piccolo would not last much longer.

For once in his life, well, since Kakkarot defeated him in their first duel (SP: you know the one I'm talking about, when Vegeta escaped in his space pod and Goku had his legs broken by Oozaru Vegetable-head), Vegeta, Prince of all Saiyans, was absolutely correct.

Jared, instead of declaring Piccolo unconscious (SP: I told you that ending was fake! /Crows/), instead started the count—

"One!"

Piccolo's hand twitched again.

"Two!"

The Namekian cracked open his sharp black eyes.

"Three!"

The three-minded being struggled to sit up.

"Four!"

Purple-gi clad legs slowly attempted to fold Indian-style under a weary body, clad with the same purple gi as the lower body.

"Five!"

Piccolo finally managed to sit up, but he had to stop there, panting, and wait for his breath to come back, before he could go on to the next step: standing.

"Six!"

Pant. Pant. Pant. Gasp, deep breath. Pant. Pant. Pant. Gasp. Those were all the sounds that could be heard from Piccolo, even as several other figures, only shadows upon the tiles before him, made their own noises. One was calling out indistinct words, the other was merely breathing heavily himself, though certainly not as hard as Piccolo.

"Seven!"

A fierce order was delivered to shaky legs to stand up, and the weary limbs did their best. They only managed to prop the rest of the body on all fours, however, before the Namekian had to catch his breath again.

"Eight!"

Pink-and-green arms were ordered to help the purple-clad legs. They complied with a mighty thrust, one that sent Piccolo up onto his knees only, with long-fingered hands resting weightily on the thighs of the legs. There the Namekian rested, peering around with his piercing black eyes at all the people watching him, even as—

"Nine!"

—Jared called out the second-to-last number before Piccolo's doom.

:-:-:-:

Gohan watched, interested, as his former mentor sat up on his knees. Piccolo looked at everyone as though nothing particular spectacular were happening, as though it were a normal occurrence to see him on his knees, bruises marring his face, his gi torn, his body worn, and his eyes filled with determination. It was, of course, _not_ a normal occurrence, but Piccolo had quite the knack today of making it seem as if it happened to him every single day of his life, and that nothing was out of the norm. For him, maybe it wasn't.

:-:-:-:

Piccolo, with a miraculously explosive surge of energy, rose to his full height, towering above both Jared the announcer and, more importantly, his opponent Vegeta. The Saiyan prince merely smirked at the Namekian, triumphant knowledge in his eyes, and then everything went into slow motion. The arena tiles reached out to Piccolo's sight again, rearing up before him in flashes. In each flash, the wide white squares came closer to him, filling up more and more of his field of vision until the second-last flash, when they were the only thing that Piccolo saw.

The last flash was accompanied by stars and something searing; was it pain? Piccolo could not tell. What he could tell was that blackness now dominated his vision, and the conscious part of his brain was fading away, away, and away, until it was gone.

In short, Piccolo had fainted. Fallen straight onto his face. He had stood up for mere seconds before Jared had said "ten", proving to the entire world the exact limits of Namekian endurance. Then he had fallen, keeled over, collapsed, straight onto the tiles, and passed out.

Vegeta was the winner.

"Oh my gosh, Majunior has just fainted! Vegeta wins by knockout!"

The Saiyan prince's smirk merely widened into a grotesque smile, before he humphed and stalked away, as only Vegeta could. But the Vegeta inside was not the same as the Vegeta outside, as we all should know by now. It would not be for many years that the Vegeta inside would be the same as the Vegeta outside, and it would take a miraculous amount of effort to even get him to that point.

Hey, what am I saying?! I'm giving away my plot (Aline: There's a plot? There's actually a plot? SP: No, _duh_! I'm winging it here, and you're not helping! /Exasperated/ Aline: Yeah, yeah. /Bored/ SP: /Rolls eyes/)!

The point was, Vegeta's match was over, and Gohan was up. Or would have been up, if a certain Kaioshin had not been so—erm—_dedicated to his duties_ as to skip out on a fight against one of the greatest fighters ever known, alive or dead, even if that person was known under a different identity, the Gold Saiyan.

In other words, Shin was a coward. But who could blame him? Gohan was a confident, charismatic—yes, _charismatic_—young man, who knew what he was doing, and was not afraid to stand up for his beliefs. He could make a first impression of being an obstinate, overbearing, smug little jerk (SP: Gasp!), but after a while, one came to realize that Gohan was not that at all. He simply knew what was the right thing to be done, and had very little tolerance for those who didn't know _and_ were supposed to be leaders or authoritative figures, such as Shin and/or Kibito.

Sheesh, Gohan is one complicated person (/SP sweatdrops/).

It was a good thing that Gohan was not an evil dude, however. He was scary sometimes.

Again, we have shot the breeze and moved off topic. Vegeta had won, and Gohan was about to step up.

But just for thirty seconds, give or take a few, just to assert his status as default winner of the fourth and last quarterfinal match, nothing else. Unfortunately. Gohan was now bored, and having Gohan bored was _not _a good thing. At all.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Whew, finally done… That took me some time, LOL.

Aline: Your fault. You weren't accepting any of my inspiration. /Snide/

SP: Ha! _You_ were the one who wasn't coming up with any ideas! I struggled through this chapter _myself_, thank you very much!

Aline: Which may be why it's such a weird chapter. You show wonderful mastery of the English language in this one, SP.

SP: Thank you. /Proud/

Aline: /Looks sidelong at authoress/ I hope you know that comment was sarcastic.

SP: Indeed I do, muse, but I'm turning it into a compliment, thank you. Very much. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some reviewers to talk to. Shoo. /Makes shooing motions with hands/

Aline: No.

SP: Aline. /Deadpan/

Aline: /Leaves/

SP: Thank Kami. /Wry/

:-:-:-:

**General Responses to Reviews**

1) **Skadu**, you know that Goten would defeat Videl _any _day. Especially since in this fic, Videl _does not_ know about ki control. Duh. /Looks™ at **Skadu**/

2) No, Gohan doesn't like being the center of attention, except for when he wants to be, that is. Such a complicated character...

3) I know that people who are dead don't have beating hearts, and since Gohan is dead, he shouldn't be aging like he is. But I finally came up with a reason that Gohan is actually aging, /SP sweatdrops/, and my reasoning is since Gohan is a guardian angel, some part of him is still alive in some waay complicated matter that only the Kais know about (and I expect it gives them headaches too heh), and that's why he ages.

The real reason is because I didn't know, when I started writing this story, that dead people didn't age (although it should have been obvious), and my stupidity is defendable, actually. Goku, even in the very, very, _very_ last chapter of DBZ, still looked the same as he did when he was fighting in the Buu saga. Now, as Goku had already stopped growing in height when he died, I think it's kinda hard to tell if Goku aged or not.

Basically, I was stupid. Thanks, though, for pointing the aging thing out! :D

4) Prank on Hercule: shave hair while he's sleeping. Hmm.... OK! :)

5) Prank Chichi? Hmm...

6) The Gohan fan-girls to be pranked... There's too many to prank all at once, so....

7) Well, **M13D**, I already wrote that Sharpner seemed to like his hair the way it was when we last read of him, so.... ;)

:-:-:-:

Thanks to **Skadu**, **bLacKBodian**, **tiger 889**, **reviewer**, **Neptunes Tsunami**, **Princess Azari Kaiya Son**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **DBZ Chick1**, **miroku-has-darkness**, and **Night-Owl123** for my reviews! At this point in time, I have 277 reviews! Awesome! /Dances in celebration/

So, after a nice hefty battle between Piccolo and Vegeta, Gohan's up! But not for long, thanks to that dastardly Shin! We knew what he was from the beginning. /Shakes head/ Anyway, we've learned a bit about the extent of Piccolo's fortitude, and a bit about what certain other people may think upon meeting Gohan! How dare they think such bad things about our Gohan?! Hmph! Anyway, what terrible things—uh—rather, _interesting_, uh, things, are going to happen now that we've also learned that Gohan is bored? Find out, on the next **Vigilante Angel**!

Review, please, for both this ficcy and **Kakkhan: Immortal Saiyan Z Fighter**! Thanks! /Bows/

_Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN **

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.


	35. Chapter the Thirty Fourth: Assembly

Vigilante Angel: Chapter the Thirty-fourth

Disclaimer: The lawyers at FUNimation keep reminding me that Dragonball Z and its affiliates do not belong to me. This must mean it's true, for they are lawyers, and therefore they _do_ know what they're doing…

Unfortunately. /Sighs/

Disclaimer Two: This disclaimer currently resides at the address of "Chapter the Twenty-seventh". Please go to that destination if you wish to visit with this disclaimer. Kindly do so, as Disclaimer Two is quite lonely over there.

A/n: My computer crashed. My laptop, my beloved Binki, it is gone. As are my files. Yeah. It is a possibility that all of my future HP fics are gone, and there were quite a few of those mind you, and all of my DBZ fics are gone too. The only one fic that was severely damaged by this, however, was **Kakkhan** 2. Binki was the one that had all of the pre-written **Kakkhan** chapters, and none of them were backed up, either. None of the DBZ or the HP files were backed up, or my forgotten Digimon fic, were backed up.

Well, I am going to be changing that, believe me. It was very lucky for me that I had not written any more **Double Hate** or **Vigilante Angel**, but my **Kakkhan** files…! Yeah, I'm devastated. (Sobs)

Ohh… Oh well! Time to get on with **Vigilante Angel** Chap Thirty-four! I've got a big business to run! (**AASN **employees pop up and start running everywhere, getting back to their jobs)

Enjoy!

* * *

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**— 

Again, we have shot the breeze and moved off topic. Vegeta had won, and Gohan was about to step up.

But just for thirty seconds, give or take a few, just to assert his status as default winner of the fourth and last quarterfinal match, nothing else. Unfortunately. Gohan was now bored, and having Gohan bored was not a good thing. At all.

* * *

**Round Two, Match Four **(A Foregone Conclusion, To Be Sure)

As Gohan expected, the female components of the audience all went berserk upon apprehending him. He cringed inwardly at all the noise the women were making, but outwardly he was oblivious to it. The men and boys were shouting too; the teenage boys (and a few older man too) were jeering and calling for his defeat while all of the younger boys were watching him with avid eyes and bated breath. There were quite a lot of "I'm going to be just like him when I grow up! I'm gonna beat my opponents with a single finger—just like him!" statements, accompanied by "Yeah, me, too!" declarations.

One little boy even piped up, "_I'm_ going to beat my opponents with no fingers!"

Gohan chuckled as he heard that on his way up the stairs to the arena. It was possible to do that sort of thing, but it was safer to just use physical means instead of with ki.

Gohan mounted the last step of the staircase and walked to the center of the arena. As he had no opponent to fight, Gohan saw no reason to move to one side of the ring as fighters were accustomed to doing, not unless he created an apparition of the real Shin that had all the strengths and weaknesses of the real person. Gohan raised an eyebrow pensively at that idea.

He sighed a moment later as his enthusiasm for the idea died. The flaw in this plan was that Gohan had absolutely no idea what Shin's strengths were. He had witnessed a few of the Kaioshin's weaknesses, and perhaps one strength (SP: i.e. his mental capacities. Sheesh, the sounds like Shin's insane or something. "Mental capacities" indeed. (Snorts)), but, as they say, it's all in the eye of the beholder. What he thought were Shin's weaknesses may not necessarily be so, and also his strengths could instead be weaknesses. It all depended on the Kaioshin.

Of course, Shin wasn't here, now was he? Noo, siree. That was precisely the problem, the reason that that Gohan was standing all alone before the world on a spindly piece of cement only twenty tiles by twenty tiles for an area of four hundred square tiles in all. And he felt like he was before an international Inquisition like the one in Europe he'd read about.

Which told him that he needed to go traveling on Earth one day, if he was referring to things he'd only read about. Hmm.

While Gohan was thus immersed in his thoughts, and ignoring the audience, Jared stepped up. Behind him a pair of monks rolled the board with the names of the fighters up the ramp provided for that very board and rolled it up quietly behind the announcer.

"Hello, everybody, and welcome to the last match of the fight! Now, during intermission, I was told that Shin was unable to participate in this match for reasons left unknown, so this fight will be a quick one," Jared started off. He was met with boos and sighs of disappointment, which were mixed in with jeers from the male population of the audience. Blasted males, can't they make up their minds? (Shrugs)

Jared, being the brave announcer he had come to be reputed to be, bravely ignored the jeers and boos and went on. They weren't meant for him, anyway. "As such, Gohan will be declared the winner by default after forty-five seconds have elapsed according to the tournament rules. Ah, it appears that those forty-five seconds have already passed, so without further ado, I declare Gohan as the winner!" He swept up his arm and flourished it in Gohan's direction.

Shouts erupted from the audience, most positive, some negative. Amongst the loudest to be heard were two screeching voices cheering for "THAT'S MY SON GOHAN! MY SON! GOHAN IS GOING TO GO ALL THE WAY! THAT'S MY SON DOWN THERE!" Yeah. Well, the second voice was yelling, "YOU CAN DO IT, GOHAN! OF COURSE, YOU CAN'T BEAT MY HUSBAND VEGETA, BUT YOU CAN DO IT!"

Gohan shook his head as he heard those proclamations (SP: or did he? The audience was so loud even a Saiyan couldn't hear through it. Hmm… Must be because he's dead or something like that. (Shrugs)). He looked towards Jared for confirmation of the fact that he could get off of the ring now, and received it in the form of a firm nod. He nodded back and did an abrupt about face, heading off down the steps down to the ground level and on his way back to the fighter's lounge. He soon reemerged again with all of the Z-senshi in tow, Goten and Trunks skipping at his sides. For what reason did they do this when none of the audience was yet rising from their seats and the readers and SP were looking expectantly at Thomas the cameraman?

Why, for the Cell Games video that was soon to be aired, of course. Silly readers, being so absent-minded as to forget about the Cell Games video. (Shakes head mournfully)

Wait, it's the ACTUAL Cell Games video? With all of the footage and everything? WHAT! WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?

We looked at each other and shrugged, then listened with bated breath as Jared opened his mouth….

"All right, everyone!" he called. "The viewing of the Cell Games video is up next! However, I must tell everyone that this Cell Games video is only a hypothetical video! It contains footage from the actual Cell Games video from the beginning, but after the world-infamous camera failure, of which is still preserved on this viewing, the video footage is only conjecture!

"It may or may not be what happened at the Cell Games, but since this is the seventh year after those notorious Games, and seven is a lucky number, the makers of this video, Wave Automatic ZTV, decided to come up with their own theory. Remember, this is only a theory. It may not actually be what happened, so don't take Wave Automatic ZTV's word for it! Only those who were actually present at the Cell Games can account for what happened there! As Hercule is the only one who has stepped forward…"

The whole world glared at Jared, for Hercule had already been proven wrong.

"All right, all right! The Gold Saiyan is indeed the one who defeated Cell, but who _is_ the Gold Saiyan? Where did he come from? Where did he go? The only question that will be answered by this video is who, and it starts right…"

As Jared spoke, a large blimp flew up and over the stadium of the World Martial Arts Tournament. The whole audience looked up with awe-filled looks on its collective faces as a well known, if enormous, video projector came down out of the blimp and stretched down forever and ever, or so it seemed. The projector finally stopped and flipped on, showing a huge number "5" on either side, so that everyone on the grounds, audience member or not, could see it.

"NOW!" Jared yelled, sweeping his arm down as if he were starting a fight. With that single word, the projector started beeping. The beeping was accompanied by the flickering screen, which was flashing numbers and counting down to the show.

"4" was displayed, "3" made its appearance (SP: ya know, like the old black-and-white American movies, with the countdown at the beginning. Just imagine that and you're dandy!), "2" peeked out, and finally "1" revealed itself. After "1" disappeared, an image stumbled onto the screen, and the beginning of the Cell Games was replayed once again for the whole world to see.

The Z-senshi settled back as they watched the Games, comparing what the world saw with their memories. They found that it was very enlightening to watch the Cell Games from this perspective, this perspective being the one who was far away from the Cell Games and could not possibly comprehend what was going on. Yes, it was very enlightening indeed. Now the Z-senshi could _really_ understand how helpless the viewers of the Cell Games by TV felt, or should have felt, as one fighter after another went down, until the legendary hero Son Goku stepped up.

As one, the Z-senshi looked at Goku, remembering how brave he had been, and what they had felt individually as he fought him. Gohan, especially, was remembering how slow his father and Cell had been, not knowing yet that he was more powerful than even his dad, but was going to very shortly. Goten, Trunks, and Marron had no understanding of why everyone was suddenly looking at Goku (or the Kakka-clown as Trunks knew him), except for the fact that he was in the video. Children. So innocent, so naïve. I'm glad I'm no longer one. :D

The Z-senshi returned to the video with the explosive first attack, and a period of anguish followed for all those who were there as they all remembered how helpless they all had felt as Goku was not able to beat Cell…

(SP: I can't remember any of the Cell Games, only the end when Goku was taking Cell with him to Northie's planet, etc, etc, etc…. Basically, this means that I don't remember exactly _when_ Piccolo uses his mental powers to destroy the camera, but as this is an AU…. Yeah.)

Then as a small boy of no older than ten or eleven years old stepped out onto the platform of the Cell Games, just at that critical time, the video broke. It was clean and sudden, no breaking up, no slurring, no flipping, flickering, or any other annoying VHS corruption indications, just a nice, clean, break that left the world hanging as it had once before.

This time it was only for a few seconds, as a image in the same vein as the one before the break, but not quite, appeared. This image showed clearly the child assumed to be the Gold Saiyan standing squarely on top of the desert of the Cell Games tournament arena. He had a fiercely determined look on his face, which under other circumstances would be called anger if it weren't for the fact that such expression was on the face of a child. Yet this child was the very hope of Earth, the very spirit of the planet that was doomed to die without him, and had yet to realize his power then. This child was destined to become the greatest warrior on Earth, and the whole universe, dead or alive.

And who currently was dead. Heh. As expected, the Z-senshi swung around to look at Gohan. Goten, Trunks, and even Marron were considerably more animated as they looked at the eldest demi-Saiyan that everyone knows and loves.

Well, Vegeta doesn't, but he at least _respects_ him, if only a little. Heh.

Anyway, I was describing the child. Hmm… oh yes, this kid of eleven years had startling jade green eyes, wild spiky gold hair, a purple gi on, blue wristbands, and carrot-colored shoes (SP: They ARE carrot-colored! I know!). He was staring at Cell with those bold jade eyes as if daring the android to come and get him.

Which the creature did. Here was a slight mistake, for Cell did not demand why he should fight so small and young a creature like the child Gohan standing before him, and the Gold Saiyan also did not offer any explanation why. However, the battle that started between the two was almost exactly like the real battle, with only four mistakes as to what happened, only one of which totally affected the battle in a way that it didn't really do in the actual battle.

Right up until the ascension, or what was around the right timing for the ascension, the Gold Saiyan was, in portrayal, a lot stronger than what Gohan had actually been before he ascended. But it was natural to seem this way, as humans would think that Gohan was unnaturally strong even before he ascended, and humans were the ones who made this movie. But how was it that this video was even a tiny bit accurate when none who were at the Cell Games had come forth to testify about it? It was most strange.

Then as the ascension roared up on the screen, the Gold Saiyan was obscured in waves and waves of blazing fire. Here were some great graphics, for not only were the flames very well synthesized, but also the great mountains cracked, the desert heaved upwards, and the whole earth seemed to be crying out in amazement and in agony at the young Gold Saiyan's power. As remarkable as that sounded, everyone in the audience got that average impression, even a certain bubbly airhead with heavily markered eyelids.

Giant tidal waves and tsunamis of bright glowing golden fire washed over the screen for what seemed eternities (SP: and certainly caused a lot of money for the video producers too. Seconds are precious, after all!). Then they gradually started receding, flowing backwards, and growing smaller, to reveal the source of the monstrous flames. As the last flame cleared away, the Gold Saiyan appeared, but in a wholly different way than he had before he plunged his arm into his hidden power, courtesy of Cell and his Cell Jrs. Yeah, those little beasts.

The Cell Jrs. were actually horribly mangled in their animation, but the Z-senshi was not inclined to correct the mistakes. It was small vengeance upon the children of Cell that they were not drawn accurately, and by no means satisfying. To see them be humiliated in person would be, however….

The whole world watched as the Gold Saiyan ripped and tore the Cell Juniors to pieces, then started in on the monster itself. Cell was severely beaten to near death before he started to fight back, but it was clear to those watching the video that the battle was over.

And soon it was. The Gold Saiyan suddenly stopped and stepped back, sliding into a stance that old-timers remembered from the greatest World Martial Arts Tournaments ever, the ones that included Son Goku, Chun Jackie, Chestnut Krillin, Bandit Yamcha, and other great legends. The stance had been famous all over the world in those times, when Son Goku was still fighting, still young, and still under the tutelage of one Master Roshi. The stance was the one that led up to the disastrous Kamehameha Wave, a move that won almost every fight that it was employed in, except for those who knew how to block against it.

With this stance, Cell stood no chance. He made a feeble effort to block against the oncoming Wave, but being as dangerously weak as he was portrayed as, he was obliterated instantly. All that was left to see was a figure falling from the air and a tall green person saying in a gruff voice that was so not Piccolo's: "His name is the Gold Saiyan." The tall green person was obviously taken from the original video and re-synthesized (SP: or whatever it is that hackers call it. Yes, HACKERS! I want to be one. :)) to face the camera, but it was good enough that the real Piccolo's eye wasn't twitching, although he did have a scowl on his face for the bad voice. And then the video ended with Wave Automatic ZTV's ending theme and the credits.

With the video's end, the whole world stirred as if waking up from an enchanted sleep. At least, that was how Gohan felt as he watched the credits roll. He was stunned at how accurate the whole showing had been, excluding his plea not to fight Cell, Goku's self-sacrifice, and Cell's return, as well as the battle of the Kamehameha Waves. The video also left out the almost-suicidal missions of Vegeta, Piccolo and Krillin to help Gohan, and Gohan's Goku-guided Super Kameha, which won the battle once and for all.

Those were very important aspects of the Cell Games, and undeserving of being left out, but the video had been very cool overall, despite how short the Gold Saiyan's fight had been after the ascension. Gohan shook his head as he remembered finally defeating Cell, and then being obliterated in his own turn by Cell's backlash of energy.

A pat on his back directed his attention to Krillin, who had a wistful smile on his face. Gohan grinned back, knowing exactly what Krillin was feeling. He looked around at everyone else: at Piccolo, who was still frowning; at Goku, who was exclaiming over how entertaining the video had been; at Vegeta, who was wearing a reminiscent look; at Eighteen, who was indifferent as always; and finally at the three children with them, all of whom were tugging on his hands.

"Yes?" Gohan asked, looking down at them. Marron raised her arms to be held up, while Goten and Trunks said in unison, "Was that really what happened?" Goten was the only one who said, "Huh, huh?" after his question, however. Trunks didn't say seven-year-old things like that. Nah.

Gohan bent down and picked up Marron, making groaning noises as he lifted her up. Krillin and Eighteen grinned at this, while Marron simply giggled at him. Marron also put her arms around Gohan's neck and laid her chin on Gohan's shoulder, in effect giving him a hug, to Gohan's surprise and gratitude. He really did need a hug after seeing and reliving _the_ worst event of his life, even if he wasn't about to admit both that it was the worst event and that he needed a hug (SP: Aww, how cute. I didn't know Gohan was such a softie. LOL, sappy isn't it?).

In answer to his brothers' questions, both biological and spiritual, he said, "That was basically what happened. There were a lot of things left out, like my Dad's sacrifice."

"And the Kamehameha battle between you and Cell, bro," Krillin chimed in, adding in his two cents. There was a murmur of agreement amongst the Z-senshi, but the Demon Trio Minus One didn't look disappointed. Rather, they just developed mischievous looks on their faces, and as the Demon Duo was the Demon Duo for a reason, they looked positively diabolical to those who knew them and what that look meant.

But what could they possibly be up to? Even the authoress doesn't know (Readers: WHAT! SP: It's true! I don't know what they're up to! Isn't it so sad? (Wails) Readers: (Start twitching with apprehension/irritation)). But does the muse?

Well, we aren't about to find out anytime soon, eh? On with the story.

As the announcer announced that they could go, the audience surged up as one and started filing out of the grandstands. The Z-senshi lined up and went out of the arena, coincidentally ending up with Gohan in the middle of a circle of protection, with Marron still in his arms, and Goten and Trunks on either side of him. This circle of protection turned out to be necessary, for once again girls attempted to mob our favorite demi-Saiyan.

Attempted is a very good word.

With Vegeta's short fuse, Goku's strength, Piccolo's intense glare, and Eighteen's imposing indifference, those silly fangirls were forced to try to admire Gohan from a distance, although it was actually very hard for them to do so. They had to first peek past Goku's height, Eighteen's same height, Piccolo's taller height, the shield that Marron had become, and finally the glare of Vegeta that distracted the fangirls from their original goal. Once these fangirls got past all of these formidable obstacles, however, they were rewarded with a single glimpse of a guy who was so hot, so cool, so _edgy_ (SP: … I think I'm getting carried away here. (Sweatdrops) that they swooned immediately upon catching sight of him.

There were a lot of unconscious girls in the stands in Gohan's wake.

Not us, though. Not us. Well, maybe one. Or two. All right, all right, there were five we had to leave behind, five readers that were very peeved to be left unconscious behind the cameraman when they rejoined the main group. Eheh…

Suffice it to say, Gohan was practically nauseous when they got into the fighter's lounge. He put down Marron, who immediately wanted to be picked up again, and collapsed onto the couch, looking decidedly green. Vegeta looked at him in disgust before stomping out of the lounge, muttering something about "stupid spawn of the third class clown". Obviously Vegeta has a long way to go before he'll properly respect Gohan, and even Goten. As for Goku, well…

Piccolo followed the disgusted Saiyan out the back door as Krillin shot Gohan sympathetic looks. Goku was confused, but a side mention of "food" soon made him forget all about that. Eighteen had a small smile on her face as she picked up her commanding daughter, while Goten and Trunks looked wide-eyed at the fallen Gohan.

It was only five minutes later, however, that Gohan bounced up from the couch. His stomach had just finished relaying him a most urgent order, and Gohan was in no condition to refuse his stomach, especially after the mobbing of the girls. He followed the tracks of his long-gone father out of the back door, with Krillin, Eighteen, Marron, Goten, and Trunks hot on his trail. Krillin, Eighteen, and Marron split with the Demonic Trio after they found out where they were going, and the Trio was left alone to race to the free buffet of huge proportions and start chomping down with Vegeta and Goku on all of the food.

It was a full fifteen minutes later when the Trio finished, only two minutes before Vegeta and Goku grabbed the rest of the food. True, Gohan had done no fighting that day, and neither had Goten or Trunks, but they had some energy to stock up on, for they had some business to transact.

Oh, yes, Gohan's earlier boredom was coming back to haunt the members of the WMAT, Z-senshi members included…

None were safe in the new hour of doom that had just befallen the World Martial Arts Tournament…

Except the ones that were to carry out the destinies of the doomed.

* * *

SP: Muahaha… 

Aline: Oh, boy. I think I have some major inspiring to do.

SP: Yes, you do. (Smiles masochistically) So much pain…

Aline: (Quietly goes away to think up some ideas)

SP: Bwa ha haha ha haha ha haha…

* * *

General Responses to Reviews

R1) **New Dye** again…

About the short fight thing: it was both because it was a short fight and because I was feeling mean at the time.

**1a) **Yes, because Piccolo does not easily get KO'd, even by Vegeta. Sorry!

**1b) **I guess. I know, I know, it's such a girl thing... God, we're not _that_ weak! Makes me gag. (Sticks finger down throat, or tries to)

**2) **No... I made it vague like that on purpose. Like I said, I was feeling mean at the time. :P

**3) **Think you know the answer to the question now? (Evil laugh)

**4)** Yes, yes, I know you asked this one before... :D (Flaps a hand at **Dye**)

WHAT! Only four questions! Are you feeling okay, **Dye**-chan? (SP rushes to check her friend's forehead)

R2) **MarshmellowDragon**—whoa, only four fingers? Weird... Wonder if Dende is the same way? (Blinks)

A 5-hr bus ride? Where? Why the HFIL would you do something like that?

Oh, a ski trip to Canada. Oh, okay. An avalanche? A-are you okay?

Yeah, weird. WHERE'S SARKI? Well, I'm using question marks a lot today. :0)

R3) **Hiaburi**—HIA-CHAN! HI! How are ya? Yeah, about the update thing, school sucks. It's full of boring not-worth-paying-any-attention-to things, and I still gotta go to it. Stupid truant officers. (Grumbles)

Hmm... For an unheard-of third time, I refuse to answer the villain question. Hee. Yeah. 3 times it's been asked. Solid...

I'm glad I made you laugh. I love it when I make people laugh. Gives me a warm fuzzy feeling...

Well, right now I still have to finish the tournament, then I might be bringing in people from other fandoms. It's only one that I've got in mind so far, though... Vampires might be cropping up too. I love vampires. It's weird, but I do. Must be the Gothic nature they're from. (Thinks)

R4) **Ali**—Yes, **Ali**. I am in no way insulting your ancestors. Blame Akira, he's the one who made/allowed Pintar to be so fat. I'm just using him because it's convenient for me. That' s it. I have quite a healthy respect for Arabs in general, meself. I just also happen to have a squerky sense of humor as well... Thank you for expressing your concern about the Arab issue. I will try to spread the word.

R5) **Salazarfalcon**—I'm actually thinking of doing something along the lines of that, but for a completely different reason and at a completely different age. You're on the right track, m'dear, but you won't find out when or why until the end of the story. Nyaa... :P this is my revenge, you Slythy, for not letting me know what Haku-chan wished for in **Shinrai no Saiken**! I'm not happy. (Sniffs haughtily)

R6) **Neptunes Tsunami**—Yes, a bored Gohan. (Sadistic grin) Let's just say a lot of people are not going to happy next chapter. Bwa haha ha haha ha haha!

R7) **Tiara Shin**—Yes, an evil cliffie. Muahaha. I have another one just now, can't ya see? I'm getting to be on a roll, and this may stop at the end of next chapter, actually. Sigh. Oh well. You will be judge, won't you?

R8) **miroku-has-darkness**—Yes, Gohan is going to be able to fight in the tournament. Yes, he's dead. He's also got a guardian angel pass. ;)

**DBZ Chick1 **and** Night-Owl123**, you guys were left out of the review responses because I can't say anything extensive to your one sentence reviews except "Thanks!" and "I updated!" Thanks for your reviews, tho!

* * *

Thanks to **miroku-has-darkness**, **Night-Owl123**, **Tiara Shin**, **Neptunes Tsunami**, **Salazarfalcon**, **Ali**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Hiaburi**, **MarshmellowDragon**, and **New Dye** for their simply fabulous reviews! (Bows) 

So, the video of the Cell Games was pretty accurate! Thank Kami! If it hadn't been, doncha think that someone would have paid dearly for that? It seems that they already will, anyway, for something's up with the Demon Trio! And, also, it appears that Gohan is still bored! No! Not cool! Buuuuutt! Gohan was also mobbed by rabid fangirls! Arggh! I thought a four-girl ninja squad got rid of those! Grr... (Starts shaking ferociously) (In strained voice) Find out, on the next **Vigilante Angel**, what's going to happen next!

_Sinon! _Have a good week! (Waves)

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN **

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

Updated 02.20.05


	36. Chapter the Thirty Fifth: Amity

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-fifth

Disclaimer: Dragonball Z does not have my name written on it. Therefore it does not belong to me. I don't see your name written on it, either, so it must not belong to you, either. However, I do see Akira Toriyama and what looks like FUNimation associated with this name, so I am forced to assume that Dragonball Z belongs to them. Fiddlesticks.

Disclaimer Two: The wonderful Disclaimer Two lives in the Castle of Chapter the Twenty-seventh at the end of the yellow brick road. Follow this if you wish to know what this disclaimer has to say, and please pay heed to its wise words, I tell you. They're very important. Well, off you go, then!

A/n: Well, I'm back again! Aren't you all so happy?

Aline: I know I'm not.

SP: Oh, please, spare me your usual sarcasm, muse. (Exasperated)

Aline: I will not.

SP: (Sighs) Fine. Do so at your own peril. (Turns away) And now, my dear readers, it's time to—

Aline: (Cuts authoress off) We don't want to hear any of your usual author's notes rubbish. Just get on with the story already.

SP: (Simply blinks for a long while, then continues as if uninterrupted) It's time to (Ignores Aline's attempt to stop the conversation once again) start thinking up some ideas to help me along the way with this story, for I'm rapidly coming to the point were I'm fresh out.

Aline: Aren't you already at that point, Panthie? (Falsely sweet)

SP: (Ignores) I have one idea, but I don't even know if it's going to be in the story. It depends on whether or not I get positive feedback on the idea, and if I don't, THEN I'm out of ideas, _okay_, muse?

Aline: Yeah, yeah, fine. Do want you want.

SP: (Glares) -/Turns back to readers-/ So there you have it. Now we can sit back and enjoy the story, as Aline so ardently desired to do so five minutes ago.

Aline: And that's FIVE minutes ago. FIVE WHOLE BORING MINUTES of _boring _authoress chatter.

SP: If it was so boring, then why did you even attempt to listen to it?

Aline: Because I want to see what happens in the story.

SP: Don't you already know what's going to happen?

Aline: No, SP, because you always hoard it so zealously until you post it, forcing me to read it at the same time as do the readers.

SP: …Oh yeah. (Smiles brilliantly)

Aline: Yeah. Now let's go already!

SP: Oh, fine. (Sighs) On with the story, and enjoy. (Says this with a demure air)

:-:-:-:

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Oh, yes, Gohan's earlier boredom was coming back to haunt the members of the WMAT, Z-senshi members included… _

_None were safe in the new hour of doom that had just befallen the World Martial Arts Tournament… _

_Except the ones that were to carry out the destinies of the doomed. _

:-:-:-:

The next day, the second rest day, the former champion and just-now-noted liar Hercule Satan woke up feeling...odd. It wasn't anything in his internal systems, unlike he'd pretended it was with his stomach at the Cell Games. No, he felt..._lighter_, as if he'd just lost some serious weight. But he didn't have any weight to lose... Did he?

The former champ got up and padded, in only his sunflower boxers, to the bathroom. When he got there, silence reigned for a few seconds. Then the shriek of a male banshee rang out and rent the air to pieces...

Hercule Satan's new haircut and clean-shaven face would surely be the talk of the town.

:-:-:-:

The next day, the second rest day, Vegeta was tense and wary. Of course, he was almost always tense, but never wary. But the Saiyan Prince had reason to be both that morning, for a certain threesome had tried to prank him again...

Unbeknownst to our favorite Saiyan Prince, there were some very curious rockets following him around...

And these rockets were filled with a certain red tomato sauce. Ya know, the one that goes on hot dogs? That one. Yeah (SP waggles eyebrows mischievously).

:-:-:-:

As for Chichi, well, she suspected nothing out of the ordinary in relation to the Demon Trio. After all, the boys knew what would happen to them if they pranked her, so she had no reason to worry, unlike Bulma.

So why was it that she had dozens upon dozens of Tupperware in her cabinets instead of her trusty Teflon frying pans? And filled with pickled radishes, no less?

Chichi absolutely HATED pickled radishes.

(SP: I made this one up, so this fault of Chichi's belongs to me. Nya!)

:-:-:-:

The people at Wave Automatic ZTV had no idea how, when, where, why, or who, but it was suddenly snowing, and in the middle of June. It didn't appear as though it was snowing anywhere else, either, which was equally as strange. But what was more pressing to them was that it was quickly becoming apparent that they were becoming snowbound.

Upon the top of the Wave Automatic ZTV skyscraper office building, a snowmaker was busily clacking away, making snow at speeds unimaginable for such a tiny little machine such as it was. It was set to go off as soon it made about fifty kilotriscals (SP: kilotriscals are mine. Thanks!) of snow, and upon turning off, would harmlessly self-destruct. The snow would then melt after a period of five hours, during which there would be mass panic and major revenge for leaving out important details of the Cell Games in the video showing at the World Martial Arts Tournament of Kapaca Island (SP: Kapaca Island also belongs to me. I don't remember the island it originally was held on. Ha! I have a whole island, I have a whole island... Wanna come over?).

However, the snowmaker was only up to 3.7 kilotriscals at the moment. It was not done yet by any means.

:-:-:-:

After drinking his usual water supply for the day, Piccolo was set to go. He had his cape on and everything, his purple gi and his carrot shoes. He had his turban on with the purple stone in its center glittering brightly. Yes, Piccolo was ready to spend the day with his comrades and his friends.

The Z-senshi. Yes, they had indeed become more than just people, _humans_, he had to work with to get rid of a common enemy. Like when Radditz had come….

At this point, Piccolo's black eyes narrowed. What was that? That color?

Piccolo moved to inspect the fuchsia color that had suddenly appeared in his line of vision. With his movement, the bright pink color disappeared, vanished so rapidly that Piccolo blinked, then slowly moved back to his original position.

It was then that he discovered that his arm was the one that was fuchsia. Yes, his _arm_. His flesh pads, which were normally light pink, were now a light green instead. Piccolo created a mirror with ki (SP: No, not ki magic, just ki. Don't ask what the difference is. It just _is_. Trust me, 'k?) and looked into it, only to confirm that all of his skin was that horribly vibrant pink, and that all of his flesh pads/muscles were colored light green.

Piccolo had just been had. An amazing feat, for Piccolo _never_ got tricked, ever, except for this one time. Good there that there were undetectable cameras around, the very same ones used to record prize-winning pictures of a prank played only two days earlier, on the first rest day.

:-:-:-:

Videl rolled over in her bed and settled back into her comfy pillows. Her hair hung into her face, so she moved again to get rid of it. She had to strain somewhat against the sheets of her bed to do so, but once her left pigtail was successfully flung back over her shoulder, it didn't matter anymore, although it should have been considered strange.

It was only when Videl reached out to twirl her hair in an absent-minded way as she used to when she was a child, and still did when she dreamed of her mother, that she first latched onto the fact that something was wrong. Your hair was supposed to lie flat on the pillow that you were sleeping on thanks to gravity, correct? Then why was hers standing on edge?

This problem brought Videl awake, if not fully. Had she been fully alert, she would have known better than to sit up, but as it was, she merely fell out of her bed, through the thin velvet of the canopy fixed on the four posters of her bed, and landed on the floor of her room with an ungraceful and _painful_ thump onto her stomach. It was through this process of falling that Videl finally greeted good morning to Reality. She didn't quite say it happily, or with the appropriate words, but Reality forgave her, especially with the situation It found her in.

Videl gaped as she finally got her breath back and looked up at her surroundings.

Eah, gaped isn't really the sufficient word. Let's find a better way to describe it. Any suggestions? (Listens intently as shouts from muses are heard) Eh, what's that? (Points to a muse) Her jaw dropped to the floor? Yes, that's a good one. Any others? You! (Point to another muse) What was yours? (Listens to muse) Ah! An excellent idea? Let's use that one! (Cheers can be heard)

All right, instead of gaping, Videl's eyes bulged and almost popped from their sockets. And it was no wonder why. Videl's room after all had literally been turned upside-down, with the bed on the ceiling and the floor bare of anything except white, which was the paint color on the actual ceiling. The mirror was also on the ceiling, as were the dresser, the vanity, the desk, her computer on the desk, and various other belongings. It was only her that was on the floor, no, ceiling, only her that had succumbed to gravity, only her that seemed to be following the rules.

There were a lot of birds seen fleeing the scene of the Satan Hotel at the piercing scream that rent the air a few moments later.

:-:-:-:

Goku was seen hopping everywhere by everyone that day. Whenever Jared spoke, sheep sounds came out instead, so that the announcer was "baa"-ing every time he opened his mouth and used his vocal cords. Master Roshi had runes scribbled on his bald head. Marron, Eighteen, and Krillin had been left alone, but Yamcha suffered from having all of his clothes taken and being left with only a Turtle Hermit gi that he had doubted still fit him. He had put it on, though, and had discovered that he could still attract the eyes of the majority of the female population, much to Gohan's relief. That had been the point of that prank, after all.

Bulma had also been left alone, although she would find a surprise waiting for at home in the form of the robotic disobedience. Not blatant robotic disobedience, as in a revolution, but the robots would get confused and do something else, or do exactly the opposite of what Bulma wanted them to do, that kind of thing. Yes, it would be a majorly-stressed out Bulma that would be found on the day after the return from Kapaca Island, and even more so since she would be the only one who would be subjected to the robotic disobedience.

However, no blame was placed upon the demi-Saiyan Demon Trio, for they, too, sported signs of pranks. Goten was covered from head to toe in Long-lasting Baking Flour, of which was guaranteed to stick to dough and to the cutting board for up to four hours, but which was also going to stick to flesh for the same amount of time. It was really hard to get off, as well, so Goten was stuck.

Trunks looked remarkably like a peacock that day, with long blue-green feathers covering every inch of his body, including his hair and his toes. The demi-Saiyan prince evinced distress at the situation he was in, but he was secretly feeling an emotion that was quite the opposite of what he showed on the outside.

Gohan…well, Gohan was… he was… he was…

OK, OK, fine, he was…

Gohan…

Gohan was fine. He was normal, if a little too cheerful that day, but no one objected when he explained that he'd been visiting a few mini-Cells yesterday. Yes, the little blue urchins were not happy, most of their number having been obliterated for the second time in a row, and were even now rallying against him as Gohan strolled around lazily in the Living World.

Of course, the Cell Juniors _did_ have to get past the big new super-charged and super-trained ogres that had been newly assigned to HFIL, and as there were only two of them left out of seven, they were vastly outnumbered and perhaps even out-powered. So there was nothing left for the Cell Juniors to do except to plot, get distracted by the new arrival for them to beat up, beat up the new arrival, and beat each other up for not sharing the new arrival. Yep, life was great.

So, what to do that day? There was nothing for him to do. Gohan, again, was bored, which usually equaled pranks, but those had already been done, with the necessary evidence collected too. Gohan didn't feel like hanging out with the rest of the Z-senshi that day, nor did he feel like going back to Otherworld. So he told everyone that he was going for a walk around the WMAT grounds, check everything out. Not waiting for the gang to affirm his wish, the dead demi-Saiyan strolled away edging inconspicuously past a group of giggling girls who were, er, "stalking" a certain bandit. (Clears throat) Hmm.

As Gohan started off on his walk, he put his hands into his pockets and put a mild look on his face, as if he had nothing in the world to do. Which was the truth, the guardian angel noted ironically. He had done everything that he could possibly have done that was of interest to him, except for visiting a few friends, friends such as one ex-psychic Gabrielle Fiolena O' Hara and the sword-spirit Arikeru. Arikeru wasn't to be bothered at the present moment; it was too busy scouting out a room in Gohan's mind that was full of mirrors. So Gabrielle was his only choice, although she was surrounded by _her_ friends: the daughter of Satan, the marked airhead, and the multi-color-haired narcissist, all of whom made up the infamous Satan Gang.

Heh. "The infamous Satan Gang" sounded like a cult to the Devil when said like that. And with her psychic talent, Gabrielle had belonged right in the middle of it. Now, though, she didn't, now that she was no longer a chonoryoku-sha.

As Gohan came into hearing range of the Satan Gang, Saiyan hearing that is, it appeared to him that his friend Gabrielle was still trying to convince her friends of that. A chuckle burst its way out of his throat at that, and the demi-Saiyan shook his head pityingly. Good thing he was here to get her away from them, if only for a day.

**_Hey, Gab. Feel up to escaping your other friends for a day? I haven't seen or spoken to you in two days,_** he said telepathically to her.

**_Gohan! Thank Kami! Get me out of here! I can't stand these questions anymore!_** was the emphatic reply. **_I know how to sense ki now, so I'll find you. Stay right where you are!_**

Gohan quirked an eyebrow. **_Really? Then why didn't you try to find me earlier? _**he asked.

**_Didn't you know? Videl got pranked. Her room got somehow got turned upside down. I had to try and comfort her, although it was harder to do without my "present-sense"._**

**_Still not used to living without it? _**Gohan asked sympathetically, veering away from the subject of Videl being pranked. Gabrielle would know for certain who ripped _that_ monkeyshine on Videl soon enough.

**_No…. It's getting better though. Hey, Gohan?_** Gabrielle's mental voice asked, a slightly wry, slightly accusing tone entering her voice.

"Yes?" Gohan said aloud, raising an eyebrow at the psychic as she came into view. His face stretched involuntarily into a Grin™ as Gabrielle stopped in front of him and placed her hands on her hips. She Looked™ at him, a smile tugging at her lips as Gohan Grinned™ charmingly at her. Then Gabrielle sighed and shook her head in defeat after a few moments as Gohan continued to Grin™ at her disarmingly.

"All right, if it wasn't you who pulled that one over Videl, then who was?" the ex-psychic finally asked, removing her hands from her hips to cross them over her chest. She raised her eyebrow and Looked™ at Gohan, settling back on her right leg as she did so. Gohan, in answer, turned and walked through the crowd, motioning with a jerk of his head for Gabrielle to follow him.

When the ex-chonoryoku-sha caught up to the demi-Saiyan, he said, as if they were still standing in the square that they had been in,

"A friend of mine." This statement was accompanied with a cheeky Grin™ and a raised eyebrow, not mentioning the teasing tone of voice Gohan said it with.

Gabrielle merely rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I _know_ that," her tone of voice clearly saying that she was trying to be patient, "but who is this friend? Before you ask how I know that you were connected somehow to the prank, you incriminated yourself. You didn't act at all surprised to hear that Videl wasp ranked, or even ask what the prank was. So I knew that were involved, but I don't think that you did it, for some reason or other," she finished. Gabrielle raised both of her eyebrows at the sheepish Gohan, who then appeared to think carefully about his answer for a few moments.

Finally Gohan said, as the pair finally escaped from a throng of people waiting to purchase the Wave Automatic ZTV's Hypothetical Cell Games Video on DVD,

"A friend of mine from Otherworld. One of many."

Gabrielle almost face-faulted at that. That was what Gohan had kept her waiting so long for? As she turned to look at Gohan, however, she caught sight of his teasing Grin™ and nearly smacked herself for her stupidity. Instead she smacked Gohan himself, lightly, so as not to hurt herself. She should have remembered that Gohan was a whole other person than the Satan Gang members. He was far more intelligent than they, especially Erasa, was stronger even than Videl, and actually understood the meaning of the word "humor". As such, he cracked jokes, and this had been one of them.

"Ow!" Gohan cried in response to Gabrielle's slap. Pouting, he covered his shoulder where Gabrielle had hit him with his hand. She only rolled her eyes and retorted in answer,

"Oh, stop it, you big baby. Seriously, who's the guy?"

"Seriously, the 'guy' is a girl. She is a master swordswoman, and was one of my teachers in swordfighting until I mastered it. She also one of my closest dead friends. She's awesome," Gohan replied, smiling at Gabrielle's surprise. She came back quickly, though, and searching through the information that she had "acquired" from Gohan, came up with her answer.

The results of this knowledge were a look of comprehension dawning on the former psychic's (SP: Kami, it's tiring to keep calling her an ex-psychic. I'm going to have to find something else to call her besides this. (Thinks)) tanned face, and a grin spreading across the same feature. Gohan smiled wider in response, showing white teeth, and laughs were thrown out into the world from these two.

But can you guess who the prankster is, given Gohan's four clues? I think it's pretty obvious myself, but as we have not seen this character in some time, it might be a bit more of a challenge (SP: I spot a clue in here…) -/Shrugs-/ Who knows? I look forward to your guesses, even if they're all wrong (That would be a miracle…)! And yes, I know this is fruitless. But it's so fun to hold these sort of contests (Looks lost)!

Anyhow, the pair continued to walk aimlessly around, occasionally parting to make way for other groups of people, occasionally drawing closer to pass in between a group. Sometimes they stopped to look at what was for sale, to buy food, or simply to view the landscape. Sometimes it was even to people-watch that they stopped, although they never stayed long at this. During all of this, they almost never stopped talking, except when they were looking at the lovely fire-colored shesazzanine birds (SP: Mesa own these!) with their long tail feathers, beautiful plumes, and very strange _kikhanj-kikhanj_ call.

It was truly a very cool day for the both of them, especially as they could remember ever having a day like that, a day where they could be just normal teenagers after abnormal situations on a relatively normal day. Of course, no day at the WMAT is ever normal, but being that it was a rest day, it wasn't as filled with excitement as yesterday, they day of the quarterfinals.

It was afternoon, late afternoon, when the two finally left each other to return to the lifestyles they usually lived. They each had smiles on their faces as they went, and each silently promised to him or herself that they would do this again. It wasn't certain when this would be; maybe it would be tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, next week, next month, next year even, but they both felt absolute certainty that it would come. And when it came, their friendship would only deepen, like it had that day.

Gabrielle, when she met her friends, was scolded for not telling them where she was going. She simply shrugged, having conveniently "forgotten" to tell them that she was leaving to meet a friend, and smiled inwardly. There was absolutely no way that she would have told them that Gohan had been waiting for her, and she wasn't about to tell them of what'd she'd done while she was away, or what had taken her so long, which was basically the same question. Nice try, Videl.

Gabrielle wasn't going to tell Sharpner that she'd just had more fun than she'd had in a long while, although Erasa noticed that she looked happier and more lively today. She wasn't about to tell Erasa that her flushed cheeks were the spawn of laughing so hard that she'd cried. No, she was not going to tell them any of those things. She hadn't told them anything about herself in a long time, and frankly she though that the Satan Gang would be surprised if she did tell them.

But that was what Gohan was for. Gohan knew almost everything about her, and he didn't care about it. Well, actually, he cared, she corrected herself, he was just more interested in who she was at the present than who she had been. At least she hoped so.

A faint feeling of reassurance washed over her as she felt this anxiety. A flicker of a smile spread over her face, and Gabrielle turned to the east, where Gohan was.

A sharp question of "What are you looking at, Brie?" brought her attention back to the three people standing in front of her. Videl had been the one who asked the question, typically enough, making Gabrielle sigh in resignation. A felling of amused sympathy, fainter than the first of reassurance, came from Gohan as he sent his regards, making Gabrielle smile again, this time tiredly. This was going be a long night, made even longer by the fact that she had already eaten dinner, thanks to her day with Gohan.

Gohan, on the other hand, was greeted enthusiastically by his little brother and Trunks. As expected, several of the members commented on the length of his absence, to which Gohan's reply was simply a shrug and,

"It's a big place around here."

It was Krillin who slyly remarked, "You weren't alone, though. We saw you earlier with a girl. She was pretty, too." The human winked at Gohan, who only Looked™ at him.

"Would you believe me if I told you she was just a friend?" he asked Krillin, a flat tone coming into his voice.

"No."

"I didn't think so," Gohan said ruefully. Krillin only snickered in answer, as did Yamcha and Vegeta. But then Goten broke into the conversation with,

"I'm hungry. Can we get some dinner?"

:-:-:-:

A/n: Well, that's over with. There was actually a scene that I wanted to include in here, but I decided not to. Maybe I'll submit it as a one-shot. It's actually not really that important to the story, but it's a sappy moment between Gohan and Goten, and I love my kawaii Son Brothers moments (Hugs plushies of Son Brothers tightly). Yeah.

Well, I'm now about to be let out for spring break, so I shall be writing as much as I can, especially in Manhattan, New York, were I'm going to on vacation with my parents. I won't leave for a week, but I'm not making any guarantees. I am going to be majorly busy, I feel it in me very bones. (Getting prophetic—not a good sign) Yeah, right. So I will be writing but not necessarily updating, because I'll be so busy. Oops! (Shrugs airily)

Hmm… What else was I going to say? I don't remember, so I'll get on with the reviews instead. Here they come!

:-:-:-:

**More Specialized General Responses to Reviews**

1) **MarshmellowDragon**—Is it nice in Scotland? Is it just me, or do you do a lot of traveling? (Thinks)

Yeah, those fangirls are so not cool. HE'S OURS! Grr…. Go Sarki! BRIGHT!orange paint please! I'll put in the warning siren, thanks for the idea ;) (Grins evilly) Muahaha…

The French of Switzerland, eh? I offer my deepest consolations on the loss of your teachers. If you liked them, that is. ;)

I updated!

2) **New Dye**—One more question than last time, how nice. (Eye twitches) Are you sure you're OK?** Dye**?

_1)_ Gohan: Not bad, actually. I just want those crazy girls to stay away from me, that's all. Other than that, it's pretty cool, to be honest.

_2)_, _3)_, & _5)_ These questions have been answered and secured. Heh!

_4)_ … I don't know. I'm going to have to think about that one. Hmm….

I have updated as soon as humanly possible, **Dye**. This chap is the result. :D Hope you liked!

PS: F.Y.I., I left some of the pranks vague on purpose. That's just what I do, **Dye**! (Sticks tongue out at reader)

3) **DBZ Chick1**—(Gapes) 3 SENTENCES! YAY! (Jumps up and down in joy) THREE WHOLE SENTENCES! WAHOO!

I'll be reading!

4) **Salazarfalcon**—Yes, I updated! Muahaha! You like? (Tilts head in imitation of a certain authoress)

What's the fainting thing about? (Tilts head again, questioning)

"Bored" + "Gohan" PRANKS! LOL.

Of course I like Shinrai! Don't worry about the same ppl reviewing all the time. That's all the reviews for VA are, really, with a few new reviewers actually dropping by at odd times. Yeah, damn is right. Heh! It actually doesn't really take me long to reply. But I really pity those ppl who get an average of 20-30 reviews per chapter… Now _that's_ work! Heh! I'm lazy too. :D PROCRASTINATORS, UNITE!

Rei's doing fine. Heh! He's actually settled in quite well after here. It helps that everyone (including me) fawns over him a lot. Heh! Is that a plug you just put in there, Fal-chan? BAD GIRL, BAD GIRL! There's no plugging allowed here! Unless it's for Shinrai, that is. (Glowers)

5)** Tiara Shin**—Get Gohan to prank who? (Blinks innocently) Yay, the judge is going to be nice. Yay! How was it this time? Not as good as last chapter, for sure. (Sadness)

The demi-Saiyan trio STRIKES! (Glomps them, grinz as they squirm and try to get away) Tee hee! Now, now boys….

:-:-:-:

Many thanks, **DBZ Chick1**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **Salazarfalcon**, **New Dye**, **Tiara Shin**, **miroku-has-darkness**, and **Night-Owl123**, for all of your excellent reviews! (Bows)

So, a lot of people have seriously been pranked! But how? Gohan admits to "recruiting" a few people from Otherworld to help him, but still, how exactly were the pranks done? Were the Demon Duo involved? It doesn't seem like we'll get to know, now does it? Oh well! On the bright side, there's more fighting to get on with in the third round! Let's find out who defeats whom on the next **Vigilante Angel**!

Well! I'll see you next time! I expect to have over 300 reviews (Gapes at ridiculous # of reviews) by the time I next update, which is an amazing thing for me, because I have never, ever, had 300 reviews for _anything_, and I never thought I would. Thanks to you, my reviewers, that dream is now going to be realized! Arigato! (Bows) (Sniffs, wipes away a tear) Sigh….

D.C. was fun! Washington D.C. that is. I'll tell you about this trip later, right now I want you to review! Review! ReviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewreviewREVIEW!

Please? (Pleading)

_Sinon! _Thanks in advance!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 03.17.05_

The Legacy of the Angel Is To Be Continued…

P.S. Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone! Wear green, please! ;)


	37. Chapter the Thirty Sixth: Fisticuffs

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-sixth

Disclaimer: It's all about Dragonball Z, and how I don't own it. /Sighs/

A/n: All right, peoples, I have a proposition for you to consider. Should I or should I not bring in one character from another fandom completely unrelated to DBZ, and anime in general actually (the character is from a very popular book series actually, and I mean, _extremely_ popular), and have that character interact with Gohan and Goten for a while, then go away again? There will be a purpose behind this, but it's mostly for the character from the other fandom than for Gohan. Hm. /Muses/ And no, this does not mean that it's a crossover. I guess it _is_ a semi-crossover, I suppose, and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

This means, however, that the character is going to be showing up for _only_ a few chapters and then disappearing again. I'm considering writing a sort-of more in-depth side-story to more fully explain what goes on with the character, Gohan, and Goten, etc. Yeah.

So, would you be willing to bear with me on this, or would you just like to know when the end of this whole fic is going to be? Either way, this fic is long. It's going to be longer with the other fandom character in here, so think _carefully_ about this before you answer me in a review.

On with the story! Enjoy!

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**—

_"Would you believe me if I told you she was just a friend?" he asked Krillin, a flat tone coming into his voice. _

_"No." _

_"I didn't think so," Gohan said ruefully. Krillin only snickered in answer, as did Yamcha and Vegeta. But then Goten broke into the conversation with, _

_"I'm hungry. Can we get some dinner?"_

:-:-:-:

**Round Three Semifinals, Match One**

Goku Grinned™ cheerfully at Juuhachi, his opponent of the day. The Android merely Looked™ coldly at him, a disdainful expression crossing her face. This was just Juuhachi's way of trying to intimidate Goku, but it didn't work, for the both of them knew that the Saiyan was much stronger than the Android. Still, Goku sobered down a little bit as Jared approached.

"Are the fighters prepared?" The time-honored question issued from the announcer's mouth, and the warriors standing in front of him acknowledged the usual reply of nods. They stepped into their stances simultaneously an instant later. Goku's cheerful smiled turned instantly into a concentrated frown, marking the change in Goku's mental process from a naïve, happy-go-lucky adult-sized kid to a fully mature, calculating, and composed warrior. The only thing that said anything about Juuhachi's shift into deeper concentration was the narrowing of her bold blue eyes. Nevertheless, the fighters were set, and a rematch such as the world had never seen before, but would possibly see again, was about to begin.

Of course, the rematch between the Android and her original target, the Saiyan Goku, would be on a way less grander scale than if these two were to duke it out elsewhere, i.e. in private. "Private" did not mean that these two would be alone in some place or other, as every member of the Z-senshi who was interested would come watch, but compared to having most of the world watching, the small gathering of Earth's Special Forces was private enough.

Because the rematch was in front of the world, and the Z-senshi did believe in privacy (SP: Weren't we just talking about that?), it was going to be a bit boring in light of what we DBZ fans are used to. There would be no ki balls, Kamehamehas, flying, jumping really, really high (the last may actually happen, who knows?), levitating, running extremely fast, or any other obvious or subtle use of ki. Imagine the disappointment on Goku's face if he were to hear these rules, especially as it meant neither he nor Juuhachi could power up.

Yeah, Goku was just crushed.

Jared, unaware of the fidgety group of readers and the authoress sitting behind him, raised his mike and his arm. The audience in the grandstand almost immediately hushed and waited for the beginning of the first match of the semi-finals.

"And begin! Fighters, go!" The arm swept down as it always did to mark the opening of a fight, and Jared had to quickly get out of the way of the rushing rhinoceroses in the ring with him in order not to get pulverized. Juuhachi and Goku, who were these rushing rhinos, slammed together and bounced off each other in the space of two seconds, each testing the other before the real fighting began.

Jared was wise enough to got off of the platform entirely as the titans enclosed within its pitifully small embrace clashed for dominance. Everyone watched with wide-eyed amazement as the fight started out, but as it started settling in, the whole grandstand started cheering for one or the other. Chichi was all for her husband, and Bulma was, too, but Roshi, the dirty old man, was whistling for Juuhachi. It was a good thing that Krillin wasn't there, for Roshi would have been smacked upside the head a good three dozen times by the angry ex-monk. As it was, Yamcha did the job for his friend anyway, although it should be noted that Oolong was being a pig too. :D

The arena, or the contents of it, was a different story. There was absolutely no noise in here, except for the occasional grunt and the far more frequent sounds of flesh thudding on flesh, of leather smacking against flesh, of leather warring with leather, and of leather hitting on cloth (SP: Hey! No flirting here, Leather! Get outta here:P). The grunts were merely grunts of exertion or of breathlessness, the latter often mistaken for pain, as they sounded the same. But these sounds did not say anything about the fantastic action that was going on.

After bouncing off of each other, the two fighters, Android and Saiyan, slid to a stop on either side of the ring. They didn't stay long at these sides, though, but immediately dashed back to each other. Juuhachi jumped at the last moment and drilled her foot into Goku's chest, but Goku blocked her at the last moment by catching her foot. The Saiyan started to swing the Android around and around with a few of the earlier mentioned grunts of exertion, while Juuhachi tried vigorously to get out of the Saiyan's grasp with grunts of breathless exertion, a new combination never tried before. (SP: Ooh, ooh, can I try it? Aline: No, you dolt, it's a fight here, not a food! SP: I KNOW THAT! Kami, you make me sound like I'm Goku or something! Aline: (Looks pointedly at authoress))

Juuhachi, bending down with great effort, finally managed to dig her fingers into Goku's wrists and the veins that were ensconced in those areas of the arm, forcing her opponent to let go of her ankle to get away from the metal-induced pain. As she was let go, the Android pushed off of Goku's hand and back-flipped gracefully to land lightly on the ground on her two feet, much like a cat. She did not hesitate from there, either, but forged determinedly on ahead to where Goku was standing, blood trickling from one of his wrists. Goku ignored the bright red liquid and braced himself to meet the Android, who was still strong enough to break through Saiyan-tough skin.

When Juuhachi was in range, Goku stood up quickly and kicked her in the face, bringing his body around sideways with force so that Juuhachi couldn't predict his action beforehand. The Android staggered back with the strength and the surprise of the blow, but she recovered quickly and dealt Goku a vicious uppercut to the solar plexus (a.k.a. the gut) as he came on towards her. Before this fight, before Cell, this uppercut would have been a devastating strike, backed as it was with the strength of three thousand pounds of indestructible steel, but, unfortunately for Juuhachi, Goku wasn't that weak anymore. As it was, the Saiyan merely gurgled for exactly three seconds before he rammed on Juuhachi's blond head with a double-handed fist.

The Android nearly fell, but, somehow, some way, she turned her fall into a floor-kick, an attempt to sweep Goku's feet out from underneath him. It would have worked too, had Goku actually been right in front of her. As Juuhachi had nearly been falling, Goku had stepped back a few steps to let the Android fall. The drop kick was foiled, and all Juuhachi got for her effort was another full-footed kick straight into her face.

Now Juuhachi was floored, landing straight onto her back so hard that her whole body vibrated, one of the most nasty effects of having a metal skeleton. Poor Eighteen. But not for long! Goku bent forward and let fly a punch with a nice amount of strength behind it, but, unluckily for him, it never reached his opponent.

Instead, two feet landed on his chest and threw him far, far away from his opponent, giving the Android enough time to get up and chase after him. Goku put his own feet down and slid to a stop, just in time for him to catch Juuhachi's fist in between his forearms. Juuhachi didn't stop, however, but brought her other fist up and punched Goku in the jaw, rattling some bones in there and making him step back. He didn't release her first fist as he stepped, making Juuhachi step ahead with him and thus losing her momentum as she stumbled.

Here the Saiyan tried his own drop kick and it was to more avail than Juuhachi's attempt. The Android pitched to the ground again, landing askew on her left hip and jarring her skeleton worse than before. Goku stepped back again, this time to avoid any more drop kicks, but this was a mistake, as it allowed Juuhachi, with her fist still stuck in the crevice made by Goku's forearms (one of which was slippery with blood), to get to her feet again. But this time, Juuhachi started to use the stuck fist to her advantage. Since Goku had such a tight hold on the fist with his arms, it was possible to execute some amazing wrestling-style moves that had before been attempted but in a different way.

With her fist still gripped by Goku's forearms, Juuhachi pulled on it, but not to claim it back. Instead, Goku was lifted off his feet and swung over Juuhachi's head and slammed into the tiles on the other side of the Android. This move, marvelously enough, did not stun Goku (Why is it "marvelously enough"? This is Goku's _head_ we're talking about here. He's famous for being so hardheaded!). The next time Goku's head collided with the tile, on the side that he'd been standing on this time, that did not stun him either. The seventh time that the infamous Saiyan-tough skull met with the tiles of the arena, though, Goku finally let go of Juuhachi's fist and fell to the ground, headfirst, for an eighth time, onto the arena, and was finally stunned.

The Android, calm as ever, looked with distaste at the blood covering her hand, streaming down her own forearm, and coating her sleeve, and thanked Kami that it wasn't much. Else it would get in the way, and she had enough on her hands. She hastily returned to the fight and strode over to stomp on Goku, only to have the Saiyan grab her leg again and throw her over _his_ head. The Android tucked in her head and rolled to her feet, turning and planting a foot squarely on Goku's nose a second later. Goku, in retaliation, let his head fall back but brought his own leg up as he tripped backwards, kicking Juuhachi in the chin as she straightened up.

The two fighters staggered backwards only a few steps before they finally stopped, moving automatically into their fighting postures as they tried to recover as much as they could before fighting again. Both of the fighters were breathing heavier than normal, but you can guess who was breathing the heaviest: Juuhachi. The Android had not had to fight anyone this hard for seven years; as it was, she had not trained for nearly that long so as to raise Marron instead. She had not considered ever having the need for fighting anymore, but she knew that if she had kept up her training, even sporadically, she would not be having this much difficulty against Goku like she was now. The Android huffed at herself in annoyance while keeping her eyes trained on Goku, ready to react if he made any move.

Goku, on the other hand, was gleeful. He was getting a proper warm-up now, which would serve him later in the finals. He had no idea whom he was going to fight in the finals, Gohan or Vegeta, but he was going to have a challenge either way. Gohan was the more likely candidate, with his strength and endurance, but Vegeta was crafty, and he wasn't far behind Gohan in strength, either. Both were at SS3, even if Gohan was in possession of far more ki than Vegeta at that level, and could control it more. It didn't matter for this tournament, though, because neither of them was going to ascend to such a level in their fight. They would have to rely on their technical skills and innate sneakiness to win their fight, such as Goku and Juuhachi were doing. (This, **New Dye**, is why you should not make assumptions about Gohan defeating Vegeta. Gohan actually may _not_ defeat Vegeta in their fight. Vegeta has as much of a chance to win as Gohan does. Just a warning, m'dear! )

Both of the fighters were eyeing each other warily for any signs of weakness. Suddenly Goku moved his foot just a tiny millimeter, but Juuhachi was already off and coming at him. Goku allowed himself a grim smile for his successful tactic, but it quickly disappeared as he waited for the Android to fall more completely into his trap. Juuhachi was like the fly invited by the spider to "Step into the parlor." (SP: Muahaha! I just had to put that in. Enjoying the fight so far? (Grins wickedly))

At the very last moment, when it seemed that Juuhachi was once again going to smash into the arms of a braced Goku, the Saiyan performed a feat that was stunning to see, and those who saw it would babble confusedly about it for years to come.

Yes, it was quite the trap that the Android fell into. For as soon as Juuhachi was only eleven steps away and closing, Goku suddenly crouched and flared open his arms. His left arm went to the ground and solidly placed a hand there, while the right hand soared into the air to help Goku stay balanced as the left hand did its work. Goku, when his left hand connected with the ground, leaned back on it, freeing up his feet. After that, he did two things at the same time, even as Juuhachi continued to lunge at him: he pushed off on his hand and kicked out with his feet, both of them. These feet landed on both of Juuhachi's shoulders, and with enough force to knock her clean to the ground.

The Android steadfastly refused to fall yet again, however, but stayed upright, if only to fall back under a ferocious barrage of fists that drove her all the way from one side of the arena to the other without stopping. Goku stopped the barrage when Juuhachi was almost at the edge, but he followed it a mighty kick to Juuhachi's stomach that she had absolutely no chance against. She actually flew over the sparse meters of grass outside of the ring and ended up smacking against the wall, jolting her skeleton for the third and hopefully last nasty time.

_Oh, I'm getting too old for this,_ was Eighteen's thought as she slid with a curious squeaking sound down the wall. _I can't do this anymore. My nuts and bolts need some rest from this sort of thing, never mind the fact that rest is exactly what put me into this predicament. I'll just leave the fighting to the boys from now on. No more of this for me; I'm staying put on this nice soft grass until I feel all better. _The Android sighed. _Of course, I could use a massage, too. I'm not going to get it here. _

When Eighteen didn't get up right away from outside the ring, Goku was worried that he'd done something to permanently injure the "tin can" as Vegeta so often liked to call her. But then he saw her sigh and he relaxed. He Grinned™ as Eighteen started to get up, finally, and hurried over to help the Android stand.

"Nice job, Eighteen. Great fight," Goku declared when the Android finally stood on her own two feet.

"Thanks, Goku. I suppose it was just a warm-up for you, though?" Eighteen asked, arching an eyebrow as she leaned on him for his support. The Saiyan Grinned™ sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head in his classic Gesture™. Eighteen nodded knowing at the Saiyan as the two walked back to the fighter's lounge. Krillin was already more than halfway out of the lounge when they encountered him; Eighteen told her husband that she was all right, just a little jarred. Even so, Krillin hovered anxiously near his wife as they continued on to the lounge, where Gohan and Vegeta were waiting for their fight to be called.

While the most recent fighters were walking back to the lounge, Jared was yelling excitedly about the fight.

"Wow! Now _that_ was a fight! Ladies and gentlemen, you have just been witness to a fight reminiscent of the old World Tournaments, the days when Son Goku was young! This type of a fight was guaranteed in those times, with Goku fighting Jackie Chun, Chestnut Krillin, Chiaotzu, Tienshinhan, Majunior, and just about any other opponent he faced back then! Goku didn't always win these fights, but he always gave it is best, and he quickly became a Tournament favorite and legend! Now you have just seen why Goku is so celebrated, and why he won so many tournaments! Let's give it up for the legendary Son Goku!"

Jared gestured with a flourish to the now surprised Goku, who had been alerted to the rant of his biggest fan (SP: You know Jared is his biggest fan outside of the Z-senshi, you know it!) by his eldest son. Goku waved cheerfully at the masses before he turned to go inside, while everyone in the audience, wide-eyed at the announcer's cry, gave him a standing ovation. The ovation went on for quite a while, and Jared nearly lost his voice right then, and Goku just waved at everyone through it all, especially at his wife and Bulma, who were ecstatic at the recognition he was getting.

Finally the clamor died down, with lots and lots of loud talking still left over, and Jared was free to announce, less haphazardly, the next fight.

"And the fighters of the second semifinal are Vegeta and Gohan!"

The Saiyan and the demi-Saiyan exchanged glances. Both smirked; Gohan jumped to his feet up from the couch he'd been perched on, and Vegeta pushed off of the wall he'd been leaning against, his arms crossed. The two warriors passed by the incoming fighters on their way out: Vegeta nodded to them silently while Gohan actually used words to congratulate them both on such a good fight. Eighteen merely said dryly, "Yours is going to be better, I know it," which only caused the smirks on the other two's faces to widen.

Yes, their fight was going to be quite a show. These two had not fought since the time that Vegeta had first arrived upon Earth with Nappa; that had been the first and only time they had fought (SP: or did these two fight in Namek? I can't remember. /Snorts/ I'm a regular DBZ history buff, aren't I?). Since then, other enemies had come in the way, and Vegeta had been more obsessed with beating Goku than with his rapidly strengthening son; indeed, both of them had been getting stronger, only Gohan had had the advantage of being young to aid Vegeta's overlook of him. Well, no longer. No longer would Gohan be overlooked by anyone, which wasn't necessarily a good thing, as well as not necessarily a bad thing. It wasn't a good thing, for then Gohan lost an advantage that he'd previously had, but then he would also be treated with the proper sense of danger that he deserved, instead of being considered a weakling because of his age and looks. So, yes, their fight was going to be a good one, and not just because of the long years spent fighting other people.

Gohan and Vegeta also had issues of power to contend with; Gohan, with his mastery of SS3 extending three years, was stronger than Vegeta, who had accessed the same level only days ago. However, Vegeta had far more experience than Gohan had fighting, even though the latter had many fights under his belt as well. Vegeta, therefore, had more strategic options at hand, and knew what to do in some instances of fighting what Gohan did not. The same applied to Gohan: he could do some things in some situations that Vegeta had not even known could be done, and thus that balanced out more evenly. Still, Vegeta had the definite advantage, and could afford to be patient and crafty, and perhaps even predict what some of Gohan's moves would be.

Basically, this fight panned out to be a game of brains versus brawn, experience versus power, stamina versus brute strength, and it would be interesting to see which triumphed over the other. This was another one of the long overdue rematches that the world had never, ever, seen before (even the Goku versus Eighteen one), and would see again, no matter who won this one.

The two fighters, Gohan and Vegeta, normally wary partners in the game that was Life, were now, in the space of time needed for their fight, opponents; people stuck on opposite sides for the sole purpose of entertaining some higher Force, enemies, rivals, what have you, these they were. But it was not to their disagreement that they were so, not at the present moment. They had a score to settle from long ago, a score that had nearly been obliterated by Time, and had nearly been forgotten in the shadow of one that was deemed far more pressing. Yes, Vegeta and Gohan had some issues to work out, and the best way (at least for them) for them to do that was by fighting.

So why aren't we watching them fight already?

That's a good question. I'll shut up now. :D

"Seeing that the fighters are prepared, let this fight commence!"

:-:-:-:

**Round Three Semifinals, Match Two**

As far as Gohan and Vegeta were concerned, there were only two people left on Earth, and they were it. It didn't matter that there were people in the grandstands cheering them on, nor did it matter that there were family and friends standing behind them in the fighter's lounge. It didn't matter to Gohan for once that Goten and Trunks were nearby, that Marron was sitting in her mother's lap safe and sound, or that his friend Gabrielle and the Satan Gang were sitting in the stands, watching them compete. Vegeta didn't care that his mate and his gaki were around, nor that Kakkarot was looking at him and _his_ brat interestedly, or that Krillin was wide-eyed as he realized the full ramifications of the fight and who was fighting it.

None of these things, normally at the very core of existence for these two, was even spared a passing thought as these two great warriors faced off.

As soon as Jared dropped his arm and called for the advent of the fight, neither saw anything but the face of his opponent.

:-:-:-:

For his first move, Gohan ducked under one of Vegeta's punches and attacked from below, delivering a right hook to Vegeta's chin within four seconds of the beginning of the fight. He followed that with a roundhouse kick that actually contained less power that it normally would; he was obviously pacing himself. It was a good idea, but Vegeta, as a result, was able to bounce back faster from the blow and Gohan had less time to plan his own offensive. So he hastily discarded the idea, but he still didn't, and wouldn't, go in with his guns, er, fists blazing. Not until later.

Vegeta had in mind much the same tactics. He would reserve some of his power for later, and use most of his other strength to try to tire Gohan out. Then when Gohan started to fumble, he would put all of his heart and soul in defeating him.

It was in these similar states of mind that Vegeta blocked a scissor kick with his knee and retorted with a blocked attempt to land his fist into Gohan's gut. Vegeta immediately punched Gohan in the face afterwards, sending the demi-Saiyan reeling back. Alas, it was only a feint, for Gohan promptly kicked Vegeta on the hip where it jutted out, causing the elder Saiyan to fall to his knee. This was a prime opportunity for Gohan to do some damage, and he took it. He raised his hands and smashed them down on the back of Vegeta's neck, hoping to knock him out. He had no such luck, for Vegeta was only stunned, but Gohan did get the beat the Prince down quite a few times as he attempted to get up again. Vegeta was suddenly under the impression that if he had remained under the service of Frieza, this was eventually the situation he'd find himself in. this thought gave him the incentive to literally get out from under Gohan's feet.

With a feral roar, coaxed out of Vegeta by the thought of Frieza's now non-existent dominion over him, the elder warrior sat partway up, put out a hand to catch Gohan's incoming shoe, pushed the younger warrior away from him, and stood up, all in one move. In the next move Vegeta bent down his shoulders and spread out his feet, forming his fighting stance.

Gohan, on the other side of the arena and in his own stance, locked eyes with Vegeta. Speaking Saiyago in a casual tone that disguised his budding tiredness, Gohan asked,

"Care to tell me what that was all about?" He nodded to the spot that Vegeta had previously occupied while on his back as a referral.

Vegeta, with his black eyes narrowed in concentration and in rage, answered back in the same language and tone, "You just reminded me of Frieza then." The Saiyan Prince was not surprised that Gohan knew Saiyago. Heck, the gaki probably knew it better than he did at any rate! Far from being jealous or irate about that, the Prince was in actuality fiercely proud that his culture was being revived, even if the person reviving it was dead. Oh, the irony.

Gohan's own eyes narrowed a quick second before they returned to normal, and Vegeta knew that his opponent understood. His knowledge was confirmed further when Gohan muttered his apologies. Vegeta had no time to accept the apology, however, as Gohan raced toward him the second after he said it.

Instead of blocking Gohan, Vegeta grabbed him by the wrists and stopped Gohan from kicking him with a well-chosen placing of his own feet. Vegeta grinned up ferociously at the demi-Saiyan towering over him and said savagely to him,

"You will make a great warrior someday, son of Kakkarot!"

The Saiyan Prince's eyes gleamed martially as Gohan struggled to get free. The demi-Saiyan did make time to retort mockingly to Vegeta's statement, however.

"I thought I already was a great warrior, Prince of all Saiyans!" With a mighty effort, Gohan broke free of Vegeta's hold and double-footed him in the chest, forcing the Prince to step back. Vegeta only grinned in a warlike way as he shot back,

"Cheeky gaki! I'll teach you to curb that insolent tongue of yours! Grah!" That being said, the Saiyan Prince charged forward, clearly bent on giving Gohan his promised beating.

Gohan's only answer was, "Oh yeah? Then catch me if you can!"

Vegeta stopped dead as he was suddenly surrounded by a dozen Gohans all lined up in a circle (SP: Ha! TAKE THAT, **simba-rulz**!). They all looked like the real Gohan, but Vegeta did not scare easily. He knew that in time the original Gohan would appear, and he was correct.

He turned at a sudden whisper of cloth behind him and brought his hands up to block the flying kick that was coming his way. He was left dumbfounded when the attacker suddenly faded in midair, however, and looked this way and that for the Afterimage, as the technique was called. He suddenly felt a foot creeping in under his bent ankle only a second later and tried to turn around again, but he was too slow and got flipped over in midair.

He landed on his stomach on the hard unfeeling tiles beneath him (some of which were severely dented from where that idiot Kakkarot had banged his head eight times thanks to the female tin can). He felt a foot come onto his back and twisted up to see an amused Gohan bending over him, his hands on his hips, a smirk on his face, and his foot still planted infuriatingly in the middle of Vegeta's back. The purebred Saiyan growled and rolled over, using his momentum to kick Gohan in the face (SP: How he did that I have no idea. Who knew, Vegeta's elastic! ) and to get to his feet in another one of those one-move maneuvers. I don't know _how_ Vegeta does those things, I really don't. /Shakes head, disbelieving/

Anyway, the fight had been going on for ten minutes now, and for a fight, that was long. But the world was enthralled, just as they had been with Goku and Juuhachi as they fought, and were getting a proper fight for once, or twice, in this tournament. No more of those amazing feats that were amazing, yes, but didn't keep the audience in their seats for more than a minute. There were _some_ people who wanted to sit down for some length of time, thank you very much. /Scoffs haughtily/

Yeah, the fight was getting long. It was also heating up, as Gohan and Vegeta were putting more power behind their blows, due to the fact that both of them were getting tired. It wasn't evident in so many words just yet that these two mighty Saiyan warriors were slowing down; they were still as fast and as furious as they had been when they started the fight. But the both of them took one second more to recover than when they had started the fight, and they were taking in more deep breaths than they normally would, and they were also just a minute fraction slower than when first starting the second match of the century. Obviously the first match of the century is the fight between Juuhachi and Goku. Well, if you counted the fact that Videl and Killa had a pretty good fight themselves, I supposed this is actually the third match of the century, but anyway.

The Saiyan boys were still going at it, though, and were not about to stop just because they were getting tired. Tiredness was for the weak to acknowledge and to let hinder; the strong ignored it completely and fought on. As some person so cleverly came up with to put on the back of sports shirts, "Pain is temporary; Pride is forever!", and the very example of this was the fight between Gohan and Vegeta, Vegeta and Gohan, two Saiyans, fully independent, fighting for dominion and power, and bragging rights, too, over the other. Neither was winning at the present moment. Joy.

Five more minutes later, the audience was getting restless. "_When_ was this fight going to be over again?" everyone asked their neighbors, except, of course, the non-fighting Z-senshi members. These were currently screaming their hearts out, the loudest two being Chichi for Gohan, and Bulma for Vegeta. The rest were for Gohan, but I will not mention what Roshi was doing with the pretty blonde sitting next to him, no, I will not. I will leave it for you to imagine the wanderings of a dirty old man and what he does in that situation. Sheesh.

Finally, a blow from Vegeta struck Gohan on the left side of his face, right where his scar rested peacefully. Gohan fell from that blow and landed hard on his forearm, even sliding a bit on the tile. It didn't hurt him to have the scar punched, no, what Gohan was reacting to was the fact that the cheekbone beneath the scar had been punched three times already, and the force behind that last blow had been enough to break it apart entirely, even though it didn't do that. Gohan rested on the platform boards, breathing heavily, and looked up at Vegeta standing over him. The Saiyan Prince was also breathing heavily, but a spark of pugnacity still resided in his eyes, and Gohan knew he wasn't going to get far if he tried to get up. So, what to do? I know, I know!

"All right, Vegeta," Gohan panted, his eyes glazing over, "that's it for me. I'm not going to get any farther in this state. You can knock me out, I don't care." He waited for Vegeta to smirk and drop his guard, then hooked a boot around Vegeta's calf and neatly tripped him, jumping up in the next second. He looked carefully down at Vegeta, who looked surprised, then said, "Did I say that I didn't care? Oops, sorry, I lied. Whoops." He Grinned™ cheekily at the Saiyan Prince, whose expression was now irate, and kicked him straight in the eyes, knocking out the last pureblooded Prince of all Saiyans alive.

So, the answer to the question "what to do?" was to trick your opponent? Gohan asked himself. Apparently so, he answered. The demi-Saiyan shrugged. Hey, whatever works, as long as your opponent understands afterwards. He winced. This wasn't going to be pretty.

He stepped away from Vegeta to let Jared examine him, still wincing inwardly about the just revenge Vegeta was undoubtedly going to exact the next time they met. Externally, he looked to be on an adrenaline-high, with his face flushed through the bruises (yes, bruises), cuts, scrapes, blood, and all else that comes from pugilistic encounters with another Saiyan (that is, if you're a Saiyan yourself, heh!). His eyes had a unnatural light to them, and there was a fierce smirk on his face, even as Gohan put his hands in his pockets and settled back on his heels, as if to act bored. He was in actuality pretending to act bored, but then we knew that. Duh.

Then Jared stood up and put his microphone to his face. "And with an utterly underhanded tactic, Gohan defeats Vegeta!"

:-:-:-:

A/n: Wah! I wanted Vegeta to win! Darn chapter! How dare you run away with me! (Grumbles) Turned out that Gohan was more crafty than Vegeta, eh? LOL!

Whoa, baby! I've got 5,648 words of story content, not including the author's note at the beginning and end of the text! WHOA! That's HUGE! I've gotten used to getting 3-4 thousand words, but over FIVE thousand! I think I'm going to faint. /Sits down abruptly/ And to think I just wanted to include both semifinals in the same chapter…. Yeeks! (Hides behind her chair and curls up) /Starts rocking back and forth and sucking her thumb like a regressive child/

/Returns to normal/ Scary…

:-:-:-:

**More Specialized General Responses to Reviews**

1)** New Dye**: (Bursts out laughing at statements about Yamcha) (Tries to calm down, but fails)

5 minutes later….- (Finally calms down) Hoo… (Wipes away laugh-tears on face)

…OK… So 3 questions, and one was a fake question, right? (Wondering) So that makes two questions for me to answer. /Blinks/ OK!

_Q1)_ I think I said why in the chapter. Hm, I'll have to reread it meself and see. I think that Roshi got pranked though, with runes on his head or something. Thanks to you, I'm now not sure. Thanks a lot, **Dye**/Mock ungrateful/

_Q3)_ Hmm… Yes. :D

If you don't have any questions for me, **Dye** (as is evident by the disturbingly low number these many chapters), you don't have to think up any. I'm not putting any pressure on you to think up questions, none at all. I would like you to review, though, and just give me an idea of how things are going at your end. Yeah.

What was that catchy phrase? Till later, make mine Vigilante Angel by TheShadowPanther? I don't get it! (Is extremely confused) Ay yi….

2) **Salazarfalcon**—Yeah, I thought that was a plug. Bad Falcon! (Shakes head at shameless Fal-chan admonishingly) Bad!

Yay! The Shinrai slump went away! Wahoo! When is the stupid chap coming out anyway! (Grumbles) Sneaky authoress, dangling it in front of me. Grr... I really don't care if Shinrai or Partners get looked at that often. _I_ know that it's there, and _I_ love it. So :P! LOL:D What's the 17 and 27 respectively thingy about? (Confused)

3) **Tiara Shin**—No, not a very good cliffie... (Sniffs) I'm sorry... One of the siblings pranked Videl's room? Can you be more specific? (Grins) Yes, I have an island:P Happy days! Thanks for the compliment on the pranks:D It was hard work thinking up all those pranks. Now, though, we approach the end of the tournament and I'll be out of ideas again... (Sighs)

Aww, Goten's so cute! Thanks for your review of **Vigilante Angel: Fraternity**! Arigatou! (Bows)

4) **miroku-has-darkness**—But I have such company when I talk to myself! (Blinks innocently) :D

5) **MarshmellowDragon**: YES! Orange!paint, here we come! (Cackles) Yes, Yamcha-kun had better watch out, or else his beautiful skin will be ruined, as will his hair, his face, his clothes... (Grinz evilly)

Yes, it would be fun to walk on the ceiling! (Extreme happiness)

Hail, in Scotland? Oh god. I'm not going there. I have crazy enough weather in my part of the U.S. already. Damn snow blizzards. /Mutters/ You're welcome.

Ciao! (Where's Svizzera (sp?) O.o)

6) **Neptunes Tsunami**—Oh, yeah, I love Gabrielle. I was wondering what I was going to do with her, but no it seems she has a path to follow once more... Heh.

I'm tired of coming up with pranks meself, so I'm going to try and cut down on them. If demand by the public is too much, though... I updated:D

:-:-:-:

Thanks to **New Dye**, **Salazarfalcon**, **Tiara Shin**, **miroku-has-darkness**, **MarshmellowDragon**, and **Neptunes Tsunami** for their excellent reviews!

Thanks to **Tiara Shin**, **MarshmellowDragon**, and **Salazarfalcon **for reviewing **Vigilante Angel: Fraternity**!

So, Goku defeats Juuhachi, and Gohan has to get sneaky to beat Vegeta! Oh, no! What does this mean for the world if Vegeta seeks just transaction from Gohan for his surreptitiousness? God, that's a long word. Good thing I didn't have to type it. Heh! Thank Kami for built-in computer thesauruses! Heeheehee…. Yeah. But how in the world are Juuhachi and Vegeta going to make it during the exhibition fights? Find out in the next chapter of **Vigilante Angel**!

Let me know what you think about the other fandom character thingamabobby! Arigatou!

_Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 03.24.05_


	38. Chapter the Thirty Seventh: Displays

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-seventh

Disclaimer: Never will I own Dragonball Z.

Warning: Slight Vegeta OOC-ness, at least I think so. /Shrugs/

A/n: I don't want to take too long here, you've waited long enough, but I just wanted to say thanks for being patient with me and enjoy! (Chapter dedicated to my dog Kate, just for being my dog. ) DON'T KILL ME!

Go on with you now! Read! Review! Have fun! GO TO SCHOOL! (Unless of course you don't _have_ any school, lucky!)

:-:-:-:

Last time, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Then Jared stood up and put his microphone to his face. "And with an utterly underhanded tactic, Gohan defeats Vegeta!"_

:-:-:-:

It was fortunate for Vegeta and his pride that Gohan refused to let the team of monks carry him off on a stretcher. Instead Goku had to run out with a Senzu Bean and put it into Vegeta's mouth, while Gohan made him swallow it. It was only a few moments later that the Saiyan Prince bounded up and affixed one of his customary Death Glares™ onto Gohan, who Grinned™ sheepishly back.

"Sorry, Vegeta!" said the demi-Saiyan, rubbing the back of his head in the classic Sheepish Son Gesture™. The Saiyan Prince snorted and stomped off, leading the elder Son males down the stairs and the walkway, clearly affronted.

Inwardly, he was thinking, _Well. It seems that Gohan has finally shed his fears about fighting, especially against one almost as strong as he is. _Vegeta was, of course, referring to the display Gohan had put on when he'd refused to fight Cell so as not to lose control of his hidden power. That display had been before the brat had ascended then, and before those disgusting Cell Jrs had been spawned. Vegeta still got goosebumps from remembering the Jrs. Yes, Gohan had at last matured into the warrior he'd shown flashes of being at the Cell Games, and had acted like a true Saiyan, not hesitating to attack his opponent on the ground or using trickery to win his fights.

The Prince smirked inwardly. Indeed, Gohan had his respect. It didn't mean that he had to show it, though, now did it?

Eighteen and Goku had already devoured two of the Senzu beans that Krillin had brought along, and Gohan was given his own. Into his mouth the little bean went, and as fast as lightning, Gohan was back to normal, with no sign of the fight he'd just had present. Even his face, badly busted up from Vegeta's pugnacity, was clean and healthy, and his cheekbone, which had been bothering him in the back of his head, was quiet. Gohan gratefully thanked Dende and Korin for the existence of these beans, for they were miraculous little mechanisms. Of course, Gohan _could_ have healed himself using ki magic, but he didn't think of it in the presence of the Senzu beans.

Outside, the team of monks operating the scoreboard with the fights on it were getting busy filling the scoreboard in. Gohan's blue line was extended past Vegeta's red line to meet up with Goku's green line, declaring to those who knew how to read charts that the finals consisted of the two fighters Goku and Gohan. It was suddenly noted by Jared in a brief flash of distraction that they had the same last name, but the announcer had no chance to mull over it as the exhibition matches were coming up. He would have to ask the fighters later what the connection was. For now, he had to tell the world about the exhibition matches.

Those working the scoreboard finished with the semifinals matches and flipped the board over. On the backside, which was labeled "EXHIBITION MATCHES" in big bright black kanji across the top, were inscribed the fighters who had lost in the rounds previous to the semifinals and who they were matched up against. The monks added to these names the ones who had lost in the semifinals, namely Juuhachi and Vegeta. Unfortunately, it meant that these two were pitted against each other, and Eighteen was not particularly happy about having to fight another Saiyan after just recovering from fighting one. Heh!

After telling the grandstands about the exhibition matches, which would start in a half-hour, Jared put down his microphone and jogged over to the fighters who would be participating in the demonstrations. He looked over the "human" fighters critically, in particular Videl (who was glad that she'd had some resting time, for Goten looked to be a handful right then) and Killa (who was very stoic, despite facing off against Majunior instead of Krillin, thanks to the cowardly Kibito). These two had been injured from their matches, but they appeared to be all right. Pintar was also there, and he was stretching out his muscles and doing some acrobatic flips. Jared had already checked to see if he was all right, and the Persian had assured him he was fine.

Hercule, surprisingly enough, was also there, although he stayed far away from the Z-senshi, in particular Gohan and Krillin. When the two fighters saw this, they shared grins of delight, and Gohan congratulated Krillin on his successful intimidation technique.

"Aw, it was nothing, bro. I just couldn't let him get away with tarnishing your name, that's all," Krillin shrugged. Gohan nodded, then turned back as Jared started to speak.

"All right, everyone, here's the deal. The exhibition matches are to be thirty minutes long, no more and no less, so as to let the fighters in the finals a chance to relax and get some rest. I see that such fighters don't need this," and here the announcer nodded to the healthy Goku and Gohan, "but we're going to go ahead with the matches anyway. Juuhachi and Vegeta, as you were the last ones to fight, we'll be giving you a break of another half-hour after the last exhibition match so that you can stretch, relax, and otherwise get ready for your match. You may or may not need this, but we will be giving it to you anyway," Jared said firmly, cutting off any reply that Vegeta may have made at the announcement.

The Saiyan grumbled but was forced to subside as the announcer went on.

"Because the fights are to be no more and no less than thirty minutes, some of you may have some trouble with the fights. This is for those of you who are stronger than your opponent, as in able to defeat them with one punch or less." Titters were heard from the Z-senshi as Videl, Killa, and Pintar glared at them. Jared continued, "If you consider yourself such a person, please refrain from hitting your opponent until the timer over there," Jared waved over to the huge timer at the corner of the arena nearest to them, "starts counting down from fifteen. Then you can defeat your opponent however which way you wish."

Kami, it's amazing what people will get used to over a short period of time, isn't it? None of the non Z-senshi humans looked surprised at Jared's announcement, which was saying something, since before this WMAT, not any one of them had even _heard_ of defeating an opponent with only one finger, or fist, or whatever. They didn't even think it was possible, and yet they had seen multiple examples of that very thing happening. It was enough to shut the neural synapses down, it was so mind-boggling. Yet, here they were, wearing resigned looks on their faces at the mention of strength beyond possibility, and at their inevitable second defeat at this strength's hands. Heh! I feel sorry for them, well, except for Hercule, that is. He _knew_ about such things, he _knew_! What a coward. /Scoffs/

Anyway, let's move on. Jared outlined the rest of the rules for the exhibition matches, which were a tad stricter than normal, seeing as it _was_ exhibition, after all. Otherwise, the announcer was just delaying them, and the world, from more entertainment. And what entertainment they turned out to be.

The exhibition matches, to the surprise of many, were highly successful in amusing the audience. The matches were shams, yes, but everyone knew that, and everyone was willing to go along with it. as such, though more than a few members of the audience got up after a while, most of the world was cheering and yelling wildly, and even laughing, for two and a half hours. It was a wild ride for the Tournament managers, but it was worth it.

Trunks had great fun in dancing around Hercule and making the former champ frustrated and nervous. Hercule looked even more like the gluttonous fool that he was in reality, although the world was just find that out, shame on it. That's nice. Of course, we, watching the show from the other end of the spectrum, knew _exactly_ what was going on all this while (Lifts head haughtily). Yes.

Nevertheless, Gohan was grinning wickedly at Trunks' antics, while Goten was rolling around on the floor laughing himself into stitches. Krillin was a bit more dignified, he being on one of the sofas of the fighter's lounge instead of the floor, but his laughter was just as raucous as Goten's. Goku had a Grin™ on his face, while Vegeta was merely looking both disgusted and proud, for reason's I'm sure we all know. Muahaha.

The second the timer went off, however, it was with a single punch that Hercule found himself sent flying through the air on his back with a mightily throbbing cheek. He had the time to wonder how the heck the kid had been able to reach his cheek to punch him so hard before the top of his head exploded with pain. He saw seven dark stars (SP: Heheh, Digimon Season Four rocks on, baby!) dance in a waltz in the instant prior to falling into the caliginous abyss of unconsciousness.

To her credit, Videl fought valiantly against the Terror that was Goten. The little tyke took the spawn of the Satan a little more seriously than Trunks did Satan himself, resulting in a fight that was more a fight instead of a jester's errand as was the previous match. However, the demi-Saiyan was too strong for Videl, persistent though she was, and almost didn't make it past half and hour in match length. There were a lot of fists flying, mostly from Videl, and a lot of blocks, all from Goten, and a lot of damaging finger poking, again all from Goten. Videl could not believe how much she hurt from a single poke of the little kid's finger. Sure, he was one of _those_ people, but she should be able to hold him off better than that! She resolved that she would, that she would someday become as strong as this kid, and never let _anyone_ ever humiliate her as right now. She wasn't embarrassed now, but Kami knew that she would forever replay this moment over and over again for the rest of her life. Oh yes, Kami _did_ indeed know.

Dende could only shake his head in sympathy for the burdened girl only thirteen grandstand rows down from him.

WHAT? Dende's here at the WMAT watching the Tournament!

Well, duh! This **is** the day of the finals! Of course Dende would be there, especially since it's Goku versus Gohan! Like!

However, if Videl had known that the Guardian of Earth was sitting right where he was and actually _watching _her fight so badly against Goten, she would have wished that she were dead. Good thing she didn't know, then, although I'm betting that a few of us _aren't_ happy about that (SP: (Warningly) Falcon-chan…).

Now that I've thought about it, the only thing I can say is…

GO GOTEN! )

Videl met the same fate as her father, only this time she was tripped first and then kicked out of the ring. Goten leapt down to help the fallen girl up from her post, however, as soon as Jared announced the outcome for everyone to hear, if not see. Not surprisingly, Videl was shocked by this (and I would say most of the readers are too LOL) gesture of courtesy, even if she did accept the help.

Wait. Videl…accept help? Uh…that doesn't sound right. Let's back up. "…even if she did accept the help." Hm! Well, since the authoress (SP: Oh wait, that's me! Hi! (Waves)) is all-knowing, and therefore does things for a reason (Heh! I'm so flattered!), I guess the only thing we can do is…

READ ON! )

Pintar, having learned from his mistakes during his fight in the first round against Gohan, did not do acrobatic stunts. He did not rush forward, either, and try to knock his opponent, the runty Krillin, out immediately, or even to do anything dirty. In fact, the Arabian (Ali, don't get offended, I'm only using Pintar because he was in the DBZ show) was quite contrary to what he had been before he'd come out of the first round.

He was insecure, furtive, and downright paranoid, jerking at every sudden movement that Krillin made, or anyone else made for that matter, and therefore was no fun to play with. Krillin made the most of it, however, by letting Pintar attack him without being _too_ begrudging, and actually making the fight a better show than Pintar's first round had been. For instance, when Pintar came in for the attack, not only did Krillin block it, he counterattacked so slowly that Pintar was able to counter-block, if with a little difficulty.

Of course, the audience was simply delighted; they had not been able to see much of Pintar in that first-round bout, even though the Arabian hadn't been given that much of a chance to display his skills in the first place. It was also a match that did not seem to be a game, for really, they didn't know how well Krillin was able to fight. He was only known for uncovering the truth about Hercule, for being dominant enough to make the unscrupulous former champion cower and blurt out his lies before the entire world. So, to the dismay of Krillin later on, the audience thought that this was the level at which the ex-monk could fight. The third reason that the audience was delighted at was that this was a fight that they could actually see. Kami knows how frustrating it was for them to not be able to see their entertainment when it was right in front of their eyes.

Dende shook his head despairingly. He _could_ see the fight, so he _didn't_ know how frustrating it was for them to not see it. He pitied the poor fools, actually, for they really had been missing out on some serious fighting. At this point, the Kami thought that it was best to just shut off his "Kami knows" radar, and try to enjoy the fight, even knowing that there were those out there that would be screaming for his help in the world. Better make that this area in Japan, then, that was blocked off.

Being Kami was sometimes _not_ fun and games, especially when the world was in danger. Then it was **really** not cool, and it was during these times, especially only a few days ago (was it really only a week ago? It seemed like forever—Majin Buu had been defeated so quickly, thank the Kaios) that Dende wondered **why** he had taken this job.

Then again, getting first row seats at the World Martial Arts Tournament featuring his best friend versus his best friend's father was definitely a perk the young Namekian could live with. That and being visited by his best friend, who was dead, was also a plus, although being Kami didn't necessarily make that occurrence a privilege. Oh well.

Krillin's match ended in the midget delivering a "soft" roundhouse kick to Pintar's head, which sent him reeling. As it was a "soft" kick, Pintar was not sent flying across the ring, across the grass, and smacked up against the admittedly weakening restraining wall that kept the audience out and the fighters in. Instead, he was only sent keeling sideways, and here we are going to have a simply fantastic paragraph describing exactly _how_ Pintar was sent reeling.

…

…

…

Okay, fine, I'll start now. Hmph! (Sulks)

First, Pintar's head whipped around in a fast ninety-degree angle of rotation, which quickly evolved into a one-eighty-degree angle as the rest of his body followed it. The face itself was a picture: it was hugely distorted, and spittle flew out of the sideways slanting mouth, as the eyeballs stretched and the nose turned up into the air. The shoulders gyrated rapidly, forcing the torso to turn just as rapidly to keep up or break the neck, and his legs scrambled to do the same, but only managed in tripping Pintar up even more. Because his body could not react quickly enough from Krillin's kick, Pintar ended up spinning three times with his feet half off the ground before he landed straight onto his face, just as the timer went off for thirty minutes. Now that's some great timing, Krill-kun! (SP: LOL!)

Jared dashed up to Pintar, but Krillin was already there, crouched and checking his opponent's pulse. Krillin turned and looked up at the announcer and said, "Well, bro, he's unconscious, but how are you going to get him off the field?"

It was a perfectly innocent question, intended for the audience, but Jared knew that Krillin was probably capable of picking Pintar up and carrying him into the fighter's lounge all by himself. Nevertheless, he was relieved when Gohan, Goku, and Goten came out and "assisted" Krillin in moving Pintar. None of them really made an attempt to act like it was a tremendous effort for them to do this, but the audience was simply too impressed with the power of the fighters (and the "cute" struggle of Goten to help his elders as well (SP: Bleagh!)P Don't you just hate it when people are so patronizing like that! Yecch!)) to notice.

With the arrival of the human Killa and the green man Majunior upon the platform, the audience was prepared to see a match the likes of which had not been seen since, well, since that morning, actually, with that last fight of Vegeta against Gohan. They were not prepared for Killa having absolutely no chance against the green Majunior, especially as Goten yelled out to him, "Take him down, Mr. Majunior!"

Of course, the demi-Saiyan did almost shout out "Piccolo", but Gohan was right by him and he gently reminded his younger brother of the alias that the Namekian had undertaken to protect his well-earned privacy. Thank the Kaios.

Killa found himself being batted about as if he were a human volleyball and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Every time Killa tried to put his feet down and get into a position to block Majunior's onrush, Majunior himself swept by and knocked him into the air again. At one point, Killa even figured that he saw a green-purple-and-white blur flash by him, but he couldn't be quite sure. All he knew was that Majunior was waiting for him on the other side of the ring.

It was quite some time before Killa finally gathered his wits together enough to figure out that he should attempt, at least, to strike his opponent while in midair. The first blow, however, did not land. Majunior was too fast, skipping back away from the jab, and then lunged in again, producing another series of attacks that left Killa breathless and scatterbrained once more.

The human attacked two more times while flying in midair, but Majunior smacked him both times as if scolding a naughty child. It was actually on Killa's try for a fourth countermeasure that the timer rang, and Majunior's expected buffet never came. So it was with total surprise that Killa crashed into the tiles of the arena, and the audience was lifted from under the spell of another surprising fight. Gee, there had been so many in this tournament. You would think that the world would be used to these kinds of things by now. The universe knows that _we_ certainly are, LOL.

The last match, between Juuhachi and Vegeta, was not as intense as the last match, if intense is used lightly. It was more of a boxing match, with the dancing back and forth and around the other person so customary of those entertainment shows present as well in this match. Juuhachi did not want to get too close to Vegeta, and Vegeta gloated in this, especially as he had no love for the female tin can. So although few blows were traded, and these blows were disastrous for Juuhachi, it was clear that Vegeta was going to need a total peg-down session once this match was over. Good thing he's got his mate, eh? Yep. ) Oh, yes, Bulma is going to do some major ego-control once they get back to Capsule. We know she'll do a good job. (Nods head confidently)

All during the match, Vegeta lunged and feinted, while Juuhachi jumped back or actually hit him in retaliation. Never did Juuhachi take the offensive and attack Vegeta, for that was practically the same thing as committing suicide. It would be just the thing that the Saiyan would be looking for, and Juuhachi for one was sure she did not want to do that. Her husband would think the same thing, as we all know (Shoots pointed glare at someone readers can't see). Yes.

Finally, just when the suspense was killing the audience from want of good solid action, Vegeta went in for the victory and punched, punched, punched, kicked, smashed with two fists, kicked, roundhouse kicked, and uppercut. Juuhachi dodged, leant back, blocked, blocked, jumped, ducked, and tilted her head to each of Vegeta's moved, but the next one, a somersault assault (SP: hehe, a rhyme!) completely took her off guard. She clattered down onto the tiles and saw stars, not dark ones like for Hercule (SP: And the Strike of the Seven Dark Stars appears again! Muahaha! GO DIGIMON!), but bright pink ones, all cheerily twinkling at her and telling her not to worry, she was perfectly all right. Juuhachi closed her eyes from dizziness and tried to catch her breath, not really conscious of the foot of doom about to come down on her skull.

Vegeta was smirking, his plan of vengeance finally coming to a head. It was going to be sweet justice to bash that metal framework of the baka Android in like what should have happened to her a long time ago (SP: HEY!). But then a blaring sound rent the air, a sound that had made itself heard four times before: the timer.

"And the fifth and final exhibition match is over! Vegeta is deemed the winner!"

It was with a baleful glare that Vegeta put his foot down where it belonged, and with great reluctance. He eyed the cool Juuhachi darkly, as if just daring her to do _anything_ of great offense to him, and stalked huffily off. Juuhachi merely ignored him, now that she need not worry about him, and straightened herself out. She dusted the dust from the tiles off, creating a great storm as she did so (Some readers: ACHOO!), then calmly walked after Vegeta as if she were taking a stroll in some park or other. She smiled slightly at her husband's relieved grin, and took the Senzu Bean he offered her.

Outside of the fighter's lounge, Jared could be heard crying, "The exhibition matches have been concluded, so it is now time for the first and only match of the finals, Son Goku versus Son Gohan!"

:-:-:-:

As Goku and Gohan walked up the walkway to the arena, they both wore matching grins the size of an elephant, and the glitter in their eyes was exactly the same, with Gohan's looking a mite more sly than his dad's. Of course, it could have just been the light, but… (Winks).

It was only when the two fighters were up there that Jared found out some interesting news that really _should_ have been obvious from the very beginning.

"Are you two related? You have the same surname," Jared remarked, luckily holding the microphone away from his face. It just saved him _so_ much humiliation.

Gohan smirked at the oblivious announcer and replied, "Sure. He's my dad," jerking his thumb over at the relative in question.

The thud of Jared's jaw could be heard all around the stadium.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Whew! Lotsa stuff happening! Sorry I didn't describe the content of the exhibition matches much; I just wanted to get through them so that I could both get to the final match and the end of the tournament (excluding the ceremonies) and to FINALLY update at least ONE of my stories after so long. Baka writer's block, doesn't it know that it should not be standing in my way for so long! (Hears raspberry) Apparently not. ¬¬ THAT'S REALLY NICE, BLOCK OF WRITER'S ETERNAL DOOM! (Blows raspberry right back) Hmph!

Aline: Smooth, SP. Now it's going to come back and obstruct you longer than ever.

SP: I don't care! At least I showed it that I won't stand for this! (Crosses arms sulkily) And you! (Uncrosses arms and points at muse) Aren't _you_ supposed to be helping me get over this!

Aline: No. I enjoy watching you suffer like this. (Smirks)

SP: That's what I thought! (Huffs) I wonder why I keep you on when you treat me like this!

Aline: Because I'm the only muse who knows the formula for **Vigilante Angel**. (Deadpan)

SP: … Oh yeah.

Aline: (Smirks again)

:-:-:-:

**The Infamous Corner of Reviews (YAY!) **

1)To** Tiara Shin**— Two well-written fights... Thank you! I put a lot of effort into those, and apparently those exhausted my creativity resources. Eeeee... Yes, Veggie-kun's revenge IS a cliffy. Totally. LOL. My writing style? You like it? ... THANK YOU! Although I can't really figure out what the occasion for that compliment is. /Blinks/ I'm NOT telling you who she is, not until you TRY and GUESS. :D I continued, though not soon...

2) To **New Dye**—Yay, we have a Vegeta fan... LOL. I didn't want to believe that Gohan would win that way, either, but my chapter ran away with it... It was hard work catching it too. /Snickers/ Yes, that is what tournaments are about. It does make you wonder what he's going to do to Goku to win, LOL. I love holding things over your head (even though I have no idea what's going to happen myself, heh!)! )D

I decided to just scrap the other-fandom character idea. It's not really beneficial to this story, and it would cause me to write more for that other fandom than for DBZ, so... SORRY!

Make Mine Vigilante Angel by **TheShadowPanther**! LOL. Are you really that many years? Wow. To think I'm younger than you and yet still have you as a fan... The wonders of life, eh? (Shrugs)

3) To **MarshmellowDragon**—Whew, your review made me laugh. Arigatou! OK, where did the Eighteen is not old thing come from? It's been a long time since I even _read_ the last chapter, so refresh my memory for me, please. Heh! Yes, she will need a big birthday cake... I can assure you, Vegeta most _certainly_ is mad at Gohan, but our favorite _kilashiwen_ will NOT be getting a lecture for tripping a certain Saiyan no Baka—I mean Ouji! LOL! That was so funny that last one...

THE US! Gotta love the motherland, right? Right. :D What's the mallet of DOOM for? (Curious)

4) To **duckmasta2020**—No, Mystic is the level _after_ Super Saiyan Two, and it's ONLY for Gohan. Not even Goku has it. Goku is the only one who knows of the Kaio Ken technique, and the aura that Gohan and Krillin have when they access that level is blue. Thanks for the info though. I'll have to keep those in mind when I write Kakkhan. (An idea? Hmm... ALLATI!) I updated!

5) To **Salazarfalcon**—It would seem to me that you are no longer in a Shinrai slump. I just reviewed it twenty minutes ago. YAY! (Glomps) YUKI, YOU'RE BACK! Who's the temporary muse? Kyoku, our favorite dragon boy? Yeeeee! LOL, I love that muse. He's so CUTE! LOL, I'm hyper, still. :) Aw, isn't Yuki so chivalrous? GET OVER IT! I don't have any male muses. They're all female, and know how to HIT. Owie... Aline hasn't been doing that lately, though. I wonder what's she's planning? O.o Suddenly I'm afraid... (Searches for a hiding place) THANK YOU FOR UPDATING! Arigatou, Falcon-sensei! (Bows) You certainly made my day.

:-:-:-:

**Salazarfalcon**, **duckmasta2020**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **New Dye**, and **Tiara Shin**, I thank you most sincerely for your simply marvelous reviews¡Gracias! (Bows)

I was just suddenly struck by this thought that maybe Hercule changed his last name to Satan to try to intimidate people. The name change makes for great puns, let me tell you, but what if Hercule Satan wasn't _always_ that way? What if… his name had been Stanley Oompa Loompa? O.o An idea… Mua! Ha! Ha!

Aline: Witness SP at her most blasphemously evil. (Deadpan, as usual)

SP: …Ha! Ha! Ha! (Continues ad infinitum)

Aline: (Rolls eyes)

_Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 05.15.05_

(SP: …Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!)


	39. Chapter the Thirty Eighth: Grandeur

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-eighth

Disclaimer: Ya really want to mess with me on this? WHAT? You do? Ohh… fine. (Petulantly) I don't possess Dragonball Z, all right? I do covet it, though. If I owned it… (Looks deranged) Let's just say that Dragonball GT sucks, okay? (Smiles insincerely)

A/n: (Carols) I'm baaaaaaaaack! (Crickets sound) Great. I lost my audience. (Droops)

Aline: (Sardonically) That's your fault, SP.

(Rolls eyes) _Noo_, that's _your_ fault, muse. _You_ were the one who didn't inspire _me_.

Aline: If you had just sat down and started thinking about this fic—

I don't work that way, Line. _You_ know that.

Aline: Hmph. Better start, cause that's the only way I'm going to inspire you from now on. (Smug)

(Looks™ at muse) … (Gets up, pads over to metal cabinet in office)

Aline: (Eyes widen)

**_COSMO LASER BEAM CANNON!_**

Aline: (Disappears hurriedly, not bothering to leave a _crack!_ sound as she usually does)

(Puts massive laser gun _--complete with the shining lights and aluminum alloy--_ down) (Smiles sweetly, calmly) Well, enjoy! (Mutters under breath as turns from readers) Swine muse.

* * *

Earlier, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_It was only when the two fighters were up there that Jared found out some interesting news that really should have been obvious from the very beginning._

_"Are you two related? You have the same surname," Jared remarked, luckily holding the microphone away from his face. It just saved him so much humiliation._

_Gohan smirked at the oblivious announcer and replied, "Sure. He's my dad," jerking his thumb over at the relative in question._

_The thud of Jared's jaw could be heard all around the stadium.

* * *

_

**Finals Match **

The two Sons were in a small room, with bright tiles for a floor, dismal black walls, and no ceiling to be seen. Well, there _was_ a ceiling, but it wasn't as if the inhabitants of this room were looking up; else they would be seeing a roof of robin's egg blue, with white scudding across it occasionally. But they weren't looking up, so they didn't observe the beauteous sight there to behold. They only watched each other. They only studied the other male in his fighting stance, the strengths and possible weaknesses for later exploitation.

Somewhere from outside of the room, a distant disembodied voice called out, "Fighters…begin!"

The inhabitants of the room were to be seen no more.

…

Hey! What's with the stop in the action? Where'd the fighters go? (Readers face-fault violently as the authoress looks about wildly) (One reader, flat on the back, suddenly points up towards the sky) WHAT? Where are there holes in the sky! (Authoress rushes over to the reader on their back and looks up) Oh. (Deflates) Those aren't holes, those are just the fighters…. WAIT! Those are the fighters! (Readers crowd around the fallen reader and the authoress in hopes of watching the fight from there)

Wow… this is really weird… it seems that we are watching the fight from below the arena and watching the fighters duke it out above our heads. (Wondering voice) This is really cool…

But I want to see it properly from the sides! (Flaps arms helplessly, whining)

And suddenly, the authoress' wish is granted. The readers are left behind below the arena as the authoress is transported into her proper seat in the grandstand. She looks around, confused, but then shrugs and turns to the fight proper, thanking Shenron mentally. _Thanks Shenron!_

"The fighters appear to be evenly matched, each going at the other with gusto!" Jared cried, the enthusiastic peal of his voice rising over the chatter of the audience as they watched the fight. Really, microphones are the greatest invention next to cell phones, sliced bread, the Internet, sliced bread, fire… oh yeah, and sliced bread. :D

"Ooh! Gohan has just landed a decisive blow on his father, Son Goku! Goku is reeling back from the punch, shocked—oh! He has just kicked Gohan in the chin as the younger fighter moved in! It was a ruse! Gohan is shaking his head, trying to set himself straight, and here comes Goku! He lunges forward, but _misses_ as Gohan ducks under his punch and karate chops him right in the gut! Goku doubles over and chokes, but Gohan isn't done! He smashes a double-handed fist down on the small of Goku's back, flinging the other fighter down, and positively _pummels_ the downed fighter with karate chops! It's almost as if the son is giving his father a rather nasty massage!" Jared announced, narrating the fight as he saw it.

(SP: Sheesh, I've been writing in present tense so much that I have to correct my present-tense impulse to write in past tense now! Aline: (Lifts eyebrow) Really? And _who_ exactly would care about that? SP: (Sticks tongue out at muse) Meanie! (Aline only laughs) Hmph!)

"Oh! Gohan is sent sprawling! Was it Goku? YES! Goku used his position to sweep Gohan's feet out from under him! This time it's Goku who's attacking and Gohan who's on the defensive! Gohan's rolling away from Goku's punches, but how long can he keep this up?" Jared yells excitedly, his glasses almost falling off of his face in his frantic movements. "And Gohan leaps off of the tiles and blocks Goku's jump kick with ease! Goku gave him too much time to counter, and now the son's back with a vengeance! Goku is blocking, blocking—ooooh! What a nasty punch he gave there! Goku has just dealt a dangerous blow to Gohan in the form of a double eye poke! I'm not entirely sure that that's legal, but as the judges aren't stopping the fight—"

(SP: WHAT? That's a foul! Goku should be called out for that! Aline: SP, this is a martial arts fight, NOT a soccer/football game. SP: I KNOW THAT! Aline: Do you really? (SP gnashes her teeth viciously))

"Gohan continues to fight, though, despite having his eyes poked! What valiant perseverance! I think they should give an award to this young man for sheer doggedness, whether or not he wins this fight or loses!"

"And what about me? I had to fight the gaki and _I'm_ not getting an award for _my_ perseverance!" a gruff voice rang out from inside the fighter's lounge.

But no one listened to Vegeta, the Saiyan no Ouji, as the fight went on. "Hmph. Weaklings. They never listen when they should," the Saiyan muttered. Krillin snorted, causing Vegeta to turn to him with a demented look in his eye. "_What_ was that, human!" A gulp was heard and—

"And Gohan just throws his father across the ring! Goku was, as you could see, behind him, ready to do _something_ or other, when Gohan grabs his arm and pulls him over his shoulder! Goku lands hard, but he's up and on his feet as Gohan rushes to him, his hands curled into claws, ready to scratch him into pieces— Ah! Goku leaps up over Gohan's head, befuddling the young warrior for the few precious seconds that Goku needs to attack from above! Gohan falls—" There was quite the audible _thud_ that followed this comment, punctuating it quite nicely, in the authoress' opinion. Quite nicely indeed.

"But Gohan does a sweeping floor kick from the ground and _trips_ Goku up! Gohan flips up onto his feet and jumps again, dodging a two-footed attempt by Goku to trip _him_ in turn! Gohan lands, though, right on Goku's chest and _bounces_ off, avoiding yet _another_ attack from Goku on the ground, and cartwheels in the air to land gracefully onto the tiles far away from the other fighter! There he slips into his fighting stance, waiting for Goku to get up—YES! There he goes, speeding to Goku as the other fighter starts to get up! Gohan knocks Goku down again and flashes away once more, but—!"

"COME ON GOHAN, YOU CAN DO IT!" A shout (SP: or rather shriek (rubs ear ruefully)) streaked out from a certain quarter of the stands. There is stillness in the sea of people that constitutes as an audience for a single second, then with a roar of many voices, the swell of humanity congregated in one tight place rose up to their feet and started cheering themselves. They drowned out even the announcer, although he kept right on talking, oblivious to the difficulty of being heard above all that din going on around him—

"Goku and Gohan have locked fists now! It's going to be a test of brute strength—but Gohan breaks the knuckle-lock with a well-placed kick to the thigh! Goku staggers and almost falls, but Gohan dives and appears to rescue his father from the tiles! What a—no! It wasn't a rescue! Gohan just tossed Goku into the air and has jumped after him, miraculously attacking him in midair even as they are falling back down! Gohan lands on his feet, but Goku just _crashes_ to the tiles and lies there unmoving! Gohan dances away, apparently not concerned with his father's condition—Whoa! Did you see that? Goku just vaulted up from the ground and—But Gohan dodges the attack and runs behind him! Goku spins around only to be met with a positively vicious kick in the face! I'm surprised Goku is still standing after that one!

"Oh, but he isn't standing for long! Gohan kicks him again, and again, and again, and finally Goku falls! This time it appears to be for good, but Gohan isn't taking any chances! He's keeping up his attack even while Goku is on the ground, and for good reason too! Goku's still fighting back, never giving up for an inch, just like the Old Glory days at the WMAT! He's halfway off of the ground again, but Gohan smacks him down again—

"Yikes! Gohan is suddenly flying straight towards me! I've got to get out of the way or I may find myself being knocked out by a flying body going tens of kilometers per hour! I don't want that to happennnnnnnnnnnn!" Jared got his legs under him and ran, arms flailing wildly, to the left, just in time to avoid Gohan's limp frame as it sailed by, seemingly languid but really hazardous in nature, as Jared so painstakingly pointed out for us. Gohan, however, was _not_ going just tens of kilometers per hour, he was going 96.5580 kilometers per hour, according to my cell phone converter. This translates into 60 miles per hour for us American people, but for the rest of the world—

"OH! Gohan does a flip in midair and halts his momentum _just_ before he reaches the edge of the arena! Goku uses the moment to surge forward for an attack—!"

Goku growled in frustration as he zipped past Jared, wishing the announcer weren't so vocal in announcing the movements of the fighters. He doubted that Gohan _hadn't_ heard, but as the boy was still concentrating on not going over, Goku continued on.

"MY GOODNESS! Gohan shows us _just_ how sneaky he can be by dodging out of Goku's attack _at the very last minute_! Now it's _Goku's_ turn to windmill his arms wildly to regain his balance, even as Gohan comes up behind him and taps him on the shoulder! Goku lurches forth—Oh, very nice! Goku does a handstand and kicks his feet up, catching Gohan in the chin _again_ and sending him flying! Gohan does another midair flip and puts his feet down, but his momentum is too much and he's still skidding! Meanwhile, Goku is still in a handstand, and leaning perilously close to falling out of the ring—!"

* * *

A/n: So what do you guys think about the fight so far? Is it cool or is it just weird, having to depend on Jared for how the fight is going? I personally like writing it this way for now, as we actually are more involved as an audience with what is going on, as we're more dependent on Jared, just like the actual people at the WMAT! Isn't that cool?

Readers: NO!

SP: What do you mean, _no?_ (Gasps dramatically) You're hurting my feelings, being so negative like that! Wahahahaha! (Wails)

Aline: SP, you _do _know that you are blabbing on and on in the middle of a fight, right? You are interrupting one of the greatest moments of writing in your career just to have a chat about "isn't it cool to participate more in a fic and experience things exactly as people there actually may have experienced it?"!

SP:…I thought it would be nice for the readers to—

Aline: Oh, shut up already, SP! (Takes the screen and reverts it back to the story) Swine authoress…

* * *

"WHOA! Goku uses his legs to propel himself back into the ring! Gohan is already up and coming—where did _he_ come from, by the way!—and they are back at it! Could this fight be any more awesome? Apparently so! Both the fighters have just suddenly halted at either sides of the ring and are looking at each other with such _concentration_, I can't believe that the air isn't sizzling into pieces between them! This is the standoff of the century, ladies and gentlemen—not anymore! There they go again, this time not hesitating between attacks at all! I can't see how many punches and kicks have been traded, but I can tell you that they are numerous! Gohan has just punched Goku, who immediately tries to jab his knee into his son, but Gohan blocks it and goes for the feet! Goku goes, too—

"IT WAS A FEINT! Gohan wasn't attacking Goku's feet _at all_! He was just doing that so that he could punch Goku right on the nose! Goku careens back, and Gohan is just _relentless_! He continues to land blow after blow after blow upon Goku, who just keeps falling back, back, back, and back! Will Goku be able to recover and throw this young fighter off before he reaches the edge of the arena? I don't know, but it appears as though Gohan is going to win the final match of the 25th (?) World Martial Arts Tournament!"

"COME ON, GOHAN, YOU CAN BEAT HIM! PUNCH, PUNCH, PUNCH!" It was the same person who had shrieked—yelled, sorry, sorry!—earlier, and she was in fact using a person for her own displays of encouragement. That is, she was beating her hands down on poor Master Roshi's (SP: The dirty old man deserves it! Hmph!) head, while Bulma was screaming her own head off, calling, "GOKU! COME ON, FIGHT BACK! I THOUGHT YOU WERE A TOUGH SAIYAN, BUT APPARENTLY YOU CAN'T STAND BEING BEAT UP BY YOUR OWN KID! LET'S GO, GOKU!"

Only Oolong noticed Bulma's slip of the tongue, using the word "Saiyan" out in public. But as no one else seemed to notice, he shrugged and continued to pop the popcorn into his mouth, boredly watching the display of manly strength and violence play out before him. He shuddered. He was glad he wasn't into that stuff; it was painful! It also made you into bloodthirsty savages, judging from the two witches' behavior. What were they _thinking_, carrying on like that? It made him look bad!

Surreptitiously, the pig inched slowly away from the harpies jumping up and down beside him, taking the popcorn box with him. Mmm, these cheese kernels were really _good_! 'Course, he knew _what else_ was tasty…

The popcorn box spilled its contents as it slipped from the slack fingers of one very giddy pig.

"And Goku defies all odds yet _another time_ as he pushes Gohan back with a stunning offensive maneuver! I didn't see it, but with the energy and the ferocity of Gohan's attacks, it must have been _grand_, to push him off like _that_! The fight continues as Goku charges forward, sets up for an attack, but Gohan is crouching, obviously prepared to avoid the attack! Goku comes on, and on, and on, and—YIKES! Goku runs straight into Gohan's foot! I _definitely_ did not see that one, but apparently this was another ruse! Goku's down, and very possibly out, but I don't think so! Goku has shown us before that he can use the 'down and out' image to his advantage, and this may be another one of those times! Gohan is stepping back from his father, though, in a fighting stance, so it may be possible that he is thinking the same thing!

"Goku isn't moving, though, so I'll start the countdown! If Goku gets up before I count to ten, as in fully standing upright, then the fight resumes! But if he's still down when I get to ten, then Gohan WINS! I'm starting the count now, so prepare for the end of a truly spectacular fight! Here I go!

"ONE!"

Goku still lay unmoving. He did so as Jared yelled, "TWO!", bellowed "THREE!" and shouted "FOUR!" By "FIVE!", though, the Saiyan started to stir, a frown furrowing his forehead. He opened his eyes on "SIX!", lay there looking at the sky through "SEVEN!", but finally had the presence of mind to attempt sitting up at "EIGHT!" He had a bit of a problem doing this, which he worked on through "NINE!" but when Jared finally roared the final number, Goku still was not up.

"_TEN!_ Oh, my gosh, though Goku is on his hands and knees, he is not fully upright as I count ten! Son has just beaten father in a truly invigorating fight, the likes of which I have not had the honor to witness in a truly long time! Son Gohan is the winner of this match and the champion of the World Martial Arts Tournament!"

Screams. Screams thundered everywhere throughout the stadium as the news finally sank in. Son Gohan won. He beat one of the greatest fighters around—Son Goku was still as much of a legend now as he was when he won that first and only WMAT back in the day—and was the champion. The legacy had just seen a passing of rite ceremony, witnessed in full by the world, of the burden of fame and glory from father to son, from champion to champion, from fighter to fighter. Son Gohan had just proven himself able to brawl, wrestle, and hold his own with the best, and still come out on top. It was the equivalent of…of…of Son Goku himself defeating Jackie Chun for the title of World Champion, but more so, for it was the son who had surpassed the father, not just the student who had surpassed the master.

But hey! We knew this was going to happen, didn't we? Gohan is _so_ much more powerful than Goku, the full Saiyan didn't stand a _chance_! Even though Gohan didn't go Super or beyond, Goku was still hard-pressed to keep up, right? Right? RIGHT! So it was a foregone conclusion that Gohan would beat Goku. (Nods self-importantly) IT WAS STILL A GREAT FIGHT, THOUGH! (:)) Whew…

"Dad. Thanks for letting me win," Gohan said as he bent over the panting Goku, who was still on his hands and knees.

_THINNNNNNNN! _The authoress and the readers have just face-faulted.

But Goku's response was only, "Who says… I let you… win?" Goku groaned as Gohan hauled him upwards. Gohan wrapped an arm around his father's shoulders and they both started limping to the steps, Gohan Grinning™ at his dad.

"There's my dad. I knew you weren't letting me win."

_THINNNNNNNNNNNNN!_ It's a repeat performance! Authoress and readers, meet your friend, Mr. Ground, for the third time! YAY!

(Aline: Kami save us. The Panther is getting sugar-happy. I _knew_ I shouldn't have let her eat that Twix candy bar before I slapped her… (Readers hear SP laughing dementedly as she types away at her laptop))

"Oh. Okay." Goku blinked. He desisted from shrugging, though, as he was sure that if he did, the results weren't going to be pretty. So he just hung loosely from Gohan's shoulder, not minding (or thinking about) the image he must project to the world by doing that.

"Oh, come on Dad. I'd expect you to recognize a joke when you hear on. You've been fighting so many evil people who cackle at you all the time…" Gohan teased again. Goku Smiled™ half-heartedly, his shoulders hitching in a chuckle.

(SP: All right, so I'm embellishing Goku's state a little bit. He wouldn't actually be this tired after a fight like this, in normal state, but you, he's getting old… (Grins wickedly))

Gohan Grinned™ back, but turned a raised eyebrow on Jared when the announcer came rushing up.

"How does it feel, Gohan, to have beaten your father for the championship title?" the overly-effervescent announcer pressed.

The other eyebrow joined the first one as Gohan glared blandly at Jared. "Interview me later, dude. I've got to get to my food now." (SP: (Stares, mouth open) Oh, boy. (Exasperated) Saiyans. Can't get enough _food_, can they? (Shakes head, irritated))

Jared blinked rapidly as the Sons brushed by him and went carefully down the steps. He recovered and, thinking hastily, announced to the world (SP: _Yes_, Jared can think. (Glares at a few people, you know who you are!)),

"Well, it seems that our new champion is a little too tired to give us thoughts for right now! Don't worry, we will get his views for you and present him with the WMAT belt buckle to show his status the best Martial Artist in the world!"

Gohan heard the announcer and shorted. He said in a low voice to his father under the roar of approval from the crowd, "I'm the best fighter in the _world_? Hmph, try the best fighter in the _universe_, while you're at it?"

"Gohan, you did it, niisan!" Goten clamored, running out of the fighter's lounge. He jumped into the air and arched down to land safely on his brother's shoulder, the one that wasn't supporting Goku.

"Hey, squirt," Gohan greeted, as if Goten had not just almost knocked him down flat. You can tell he's too used to this behavior, right? Right? Uh-huh.

Poor kid. (Shakes head)

"Nice job, Gohan," a certain lavender-haired kid remarked conversationally. Gohan read between the lines and saw how Trunks was actually really, really impressed. He smirked at the demi-Saiyan now walking backwards in front of him, but his verbal response was only,

"Turn around before you smack into that wall."

"Huh?" Trunks answered eloquently. He looked behind him and nearly helped as he fell over the scroll that kept the audience outside from seeing the fighter's lounge inside.

Gohan stopped and shook his head at the younger demi-Saiyan. "I told you to turn around before you smacked into the wall!"

"I did!" came the muffled reply. "I just didn't stop in time!"

Gohan groaned and shook his head again. "Trunks…." He didn't say anything else, just came in and let Goku fall onto one of the couches. Then he came back over to the scroll and squatted down to Trunks' level, Goten still perched like a bird on his big brother's shoulder.

"Come on," Gohan commented, holding out a hand to Trunks. The purple-haired little brat eyed the limb suspiciously, but took it, and was hauled into the air.

"Yatta!" Trunks yelled, surprised. He only found himself on Gohan's shoulder, but he had thought that he would be flung into the wall! Not that he would have gotten hurt if that happened, but still….

Gohan merely smirked up at him. Trunks stuck a tongue out in answer, then smiled with Gohan and Goten a second later. Satisfied that everything was all right and where it should be, Gohan looked around.

"Where are Krillin, Vegeta, and Piccolo?"

All right, so maybe not _everything_. What? I can't help it if I'm such a good exaggerator! (:D)

It was Goten who answered the question. "Krillin is being chased by Trunks' dad. Mr. Piccolo is chasing Trunks' dad to make sure that Veggie-chan won't kill Krillin."

"Don't call my dad Veggie-chan!" Trunks hissed. He would have leapt onto the other boy, but there was just the small matter of an iron hand pinning him down to contend with.

"Watch it, Trunks," Gohan said warningly. Trunks grumbled, but subsided eventually. Gohan turned to Goten, then, and commanded, "Goten, you know it's not nice to call Vegeta that. Apologize to Trunks for that please."

Goten pouted, but he did what he was told.

"Good. Now, let's go find some food. I'm famished," Gohan reported, licking his lips. Goku stirred then, causing three pairs of eyes to swivel to him.

"Were you talking about food?" Goku asked. Three heads nodded in answer and leapt back as Goku bolted to his feet. "Well, what are we waiting for! Let's go!" Goku zipped out of the door as Gohan looked after him, surprised.

"I thought he was supposed to be tired," the demi-Saiyan said to the kids sitting on his shoulders. They shrugged at him in answer, indicating that they didn't know what was going on either. Gohan blinked, then shook his head. "Whatever. Let's follow him."

Goten and Trunks bounded to the ground from Gohan's shoulders and preceded Gohan out the door.

* * *

Later, Jared got the interview that he wanted. Gohan's answer to the first question asked, which was the same question Jared asked when Goku and Gohan were getting off of the platform, was simply,

"It was nothing special. I've beaten my dad before." A jiggle of the shoulders followed the comment, especially as Jared was shell-shocked beyond belief.

"_You_ beat Son Goku _before_?" the announcer gasped.

"Sure. It's not a big deal," Gohan declared. The announcer would have gaped like a fish, but Gohan indicated for him to move on with the questions.

"Oh, yeah. Um… this was your first tournament, right? Well, did you feel anything special about winning it? I mean, this _was_ your first time fighting at this magnitude!"

"Actually, it wasn't. I've fought in fights with more impact than this. But that's not the question is it? I guess I did feel something special. My little brother and my mom was there to watch me fight, and I've gotten money out of this, so my family is better off now," Gohan returned.

Jared blinked. This teen was impossible to understand (SP: No, not impossible, just… complex. Heh! (Sweatdrops))! None of the answers were anything that he'd expected, and yet they were delivered in that casual way that meant that the person saying them was telling the truth. Well, watch him get passionate about _this_ question!

"Ah, yes, the prize money. What are you going to do with your winnings when you receive them? It's five million zenni, you know!"

"Five million?" Gohan looked surprised for a second. "Wow. That's a lot. Hmm…. I guess I'll put it in a trust fund for my little brother until he turns eighteen. With the interest that it collects over eleven years…Whoo! That's a lot of money." Gohan paused as Jared stared at him. Sheesh, this kid really _was_ unpredictable! He didn't meet people like this guy every day, that's for sure. He didn't think that he'd forget this kid for a long, long time.

"Hmm… Well, I guess I'll put two thirds in the trust, put the rest of it in the bank for my family." Gohan beamed at his own genius (SP: Getting conceited, here, are we not? That's all right!). Jared goggled again.

"Are—aren't you going to keep any for yourself?" Jared asked, hesitating a little bit. Gohan looked startled, as if the idea had never occurred to him.

"For me? Oh, no, I don't need it. Well, I might, but definitely not that much." Gohan thought again for a few minutes. "Yeah, definitely not that much. Got any more questions for me? I gotta get back to the hotel soon or I'll get yelled at (SP: Ouch, that's gotta hurt. (Hugs Gohan soothingly) There, there…)."

"Just one more," Jared beseeched. He didn't have to pull a puppy-dog eyes act, but it was clear that he really _didn't_ want Gohan to stop answering questions. Gohan smirked at him and nodded for him to continue.

"Where did you learn to _fight_ like that!"

…Good question, Jared. But are you sure you want to hear the answer? (:)) LOL!

* * *

**The Day after Next, At the Ceremonies**

The rest day went without mishap (SP: I'm not sure that I put in a rest day in the original schedule, but it's mentioned here anyway!). There were no pranks, no mayhem, panic, fear, or general chaos, which several people found to be actually _scarier_ than _with_ the chaos, panic, and fear (LOL!), but there were some things that some people didn't catch. For instance, there was a new bumper sticker on Satan Hercule's private jet. The one before had said "Hail the CHAMP!", predictably enough, but this one said… insert New Dye bumper sticker here.

Obviously Hercule didn't know about this bumper sticker, but everyone else noticed it, even Videl. The Satan's daughter went both hot and cold about it, but even she laughed, with some prodding by Gabrielle. This, however, could not be called a prank, because for all the world knew, it had been placed there by Satan Hercule himself! Perhaps he was feeling generously repentant after the scandals at the WMAT? Hmm….

Satan Hercule had never been so confused in his entire life.

Now who could have done that? Gohan burst out laughing when he saw it, Trunks' eyes bugged out, and Goku exclaimed about it. However, Vegeta and Trunks seemed to be particularly satisfied, like cats who had eaten the canary….

It was time for the ceremonies, though. Time to stop daydreaming about the rest day and get on with the last tournament day!

For the last tournament day, it wasn't as grand or as exciting as the day before yesterday (the rest day was in case the champion fell unconscious after winning the fight, like had happened two tournaments ago, when the winner was NOT Hercule), but it was a close fourth! The honor of third place went to the festival that preceded the first tournament day, (with lots and lots of food, btw, and plenty of color), while second place was hard-won by the first day of the tournament itself. In first place, obviously, was the finals match, between Son Gohan and Son Goku.

Gohan, Goku, Vegeta, and Eighteen were all mounted on a huge platform facing the audience in every direction. They were the first through fourth place winners (although how the tournament people had decided between the third and fourth places was a mystery to everyone, including Jared), and all were eligible to receive a prize. Gohan, of course, already knew that he was getting five million zenni, but it was still a surprise to Goku, Vegeta, and Eighteen as to what they were getting.

Goku only cared about how much money he got so that he knew how much more food he could get to eat. Vegeta didn't care at all how much money he received, but he did care about the slight that he was being dealt ("THIRD PLACE! WHAT DO YOU MEAN, THIRD PLACE?"). Eighteen cared about how much she was getting, although it was not likely to be much compared to Gohan's, Goku's, and Vegeta's amounts. It was probably going to look like a rip-off, her amount, but whatever much she got, she would use for fixing up Roshi's house. Goodness only knows what Roshi had painted on the walls of his room.

"For the champion of the WMAT, Son Gohan, we give a check of five million zenni!" Jared announced to the exclamations of the audience. There were some envious shouts from the crowd, but most were appreciative of the amount. After _that_ bout (which was already fading from memory for some of them), this kid deserved it. No doubt he was putting it to good use, placing two-thirds in a trust fund for his younger brother ("Aw, how nice!" many people declared), and then the rest of the family ("Even nicer!").

"For the first runner-up, the second place winner, Son Goku, we present this five hundred zenni award!"

Chichi was out of her mind by now. She could buy her Goten the thousands of books that she'd always wanted him to read and study and, and, and—! Chichi couldn't help herself; she started daydreaming about all the things that Goten could now study because she had the money to afford what she thought was best for him.

"Briefs Vegeta, the second runner-up and in third place—!" There was a brief scuffle on the platform after Jared's announcement, but Gohan restrained Vegeta from doing anything. Goku looked on interestedly, but Eighteen merely ignored them all.

"For Vegeta, AND for the third runner-up in fourth place, Eighteen, the Tournament is awarding five hundred zenni!" So Eighteen wasn't going to be getting a bad amount after all. It was certainly enough to fix up whatever she thought that was nasty in Roshi's house. A satisfied smirk grew on her face as she thought about it. Yes, yes, it would be enough (SP: O.o What have I done?).

The four fighters had to stand through a medal-awarding ceremony, in which Gohan was handed a valuable platinum medal, Goku received gold, Vegeta got silver, and Eighteen settled with a bronze. Then, they had to stay up for the anthem-singing, which was horribly botched by a singer whom people loved to hate (SP: Like that Spears woman. You know, Britney? Yikes….), and THEN they stood through a relatively long speech from the big-time sponsor of the World Martial Arts Tournament, a rich guy named Yuji Barrino, who droned on and on….

Finally, though, they were let off. Chichi immediately swamped Gohan and Goku, while Vegeta stomped off with Bulma and Trunks. Eighteen went serenely to Krillin and Marron, disregarding completely the dirty old man and his pet (Oolong). Krillin greeted Eighteen with a smile and another "great job, honey" while Marron hugged her fiercely around the knees.

All in all, it was the ending to a great day, if a long one. The Z-senshi remained together for a few more hours, but eventually they parted, with promises to do this again the next time. Gohan smiled mysteriously as he heard these promises, but he didn't comment or add his own promise. He merely hugged Goten and punched Trunks lightly on the shoulder, said "Bye, mom, everyone," and disappeared to Otherworld.

There was going to be some work to do if Goku was going to stay in the Living World.

* * *

A/n: IMPORTANT! Reviews will now be answered at my website. You can get there by clicking on the homepage link in my bio. On the navigation bar, it says "Review Responses". I'm pretty sure you know what to do next, but in case you don't, you click on that, and you'll be taken to my review replies. Get it? Yes. Nod, please, to show me that you get it. And while you're at the site, CONTACT ME using the Forum (or the Guestbook)! I really would like to talk to you guys…. (Tear)

So Gohan wins the tournament, eh? I have the feeling that this will not be the _last_ tournament Gohan wins…. (Smirks) And what's this about getting Goku to stay in the Living World? Actually, if you guys don't remember, then you'll have to go back and reread the whole tournament saga. It's in there somewhere, but since even _I _couldn't find it, I can't help you. Yeah, I'm lazy and real helpful, aren't I? (Nods) I know.

The ceremony part was _torturous _to write. Actually, this whole chapter _after_ the fight was torturous to write. The fight was eager to get out, but everything else _wasn't_. (Sighs) Ah well, at least it's out. :)

So now the tournament saga's _finally_ over…. Don't really expect any speedy updates, though. I'm still stuck, and I've got a busy summer ahead of me, too, so it's not going to be like last year, where you guys had updates like every week or something like that. Sometimes even every other day. Sheesh! But the problem is not only that I'm busy. I'm also writing two other fics that just have more of my attention than does VA. I'm not going to lose interest in this, I SWEAR, but those other two fics (no, they're not on here yet) just have more inspiration going for them. (Sighs) Yeah.

Don't kill me! (Runs before a mob)

Btw, the phrase "swine muse" was inspired from Inspector Closeau (sp?) in the movie The Trail of the Pink Panther, when both he and his father said "swine something" when they were cursing it. Like, at the end, in the very last scene, a seagull poops on Closeau and he says in response, "swine seagull". _That's_ what Aline and I are going on about, calling each other "swine".

Aline: You knew I called you "swine authoress"?

(Hoods eyes) Yeah. (Raises eyebrow at muse)

Aline: (Fades away)

Thank you. Sheesh.

Thanks to everyone for their patience with me! Here's the latest update of **VA**, now review! Don't forget to visit my site for the answers to the previous reviews! Thank you for reviewing, **random3434**, **Gohan's one**, **MadnessLover**, **Briememory**, **Fairy of Speed**, **DBZ Chick1**, **miroku-has-darkness**, **Salazarfalcon**, **New Dye**, **Tiara Shin**, and **MarshmellowDragon**!

_Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline ("Swine muse," SP mutters again), from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 7.13.05_


	40. Chapter the Thirty Ninth: Kinsmen

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Thirty-ninth

Disclaimer: WHY? WHY ME? WHY must I keep doing this chapter after chapter after chapter?

... Because I don't own Dragonball Z. :)

Disclaimer Two: If you let the Force guide you, you will find Disclaimer Two at Chapter the Twenty-seventh. Just don't fall to the Dark Side! (Helpful advice, I'm sure.) :)

Disclaimer Three: If you are an avid reader of the Protector of the Small series, you may recognize some themes from there. Mesa don't own these. (Nods brightly)

A/n: (Hides under desk as a panther, hoping to avoid all of the rubbish being thrown at her) _My many apologies! _(SP says in mind-talk) _Aline has abandoned me ONCE AGAIN_ (Breaks off as readers boo). _Yes, yes, blame the muse. I always do. _(Ducks as more tomatoes are thrown) _Hey! That was my organ! _(Looks over shoulder apprehensively at musical instrument) _Yes, yes, it appears to be all right… _(Croons as rubs her head against the musical instrument) _Indeed! _(Snaps back to attention, snarls apologetically) _Well, so much for that. _(Transforms)

So! It is here at long last, the thirty-ninth chapter of **Vigilante Angel**. Great Scott, have we come that far already? It appears we have, m'dears. (Sweatdrops) And we're still not halfway done…. Madre de dios. (Shakes head) Oh, well, plenty of fun to be had! (Grins™)

Aline is a very bad muse. That is all I have to say. Enjoy!

:-:-:-:

Earlier on **Vigilante Angel**—

_All in all, it was the ending to a great day, if a long one. The Z-senshi remained together for a few more hours, but eventually they parted, with promises to do this again the next time. Gohan smiled mysteriously as he heard these promises, but he didn't comment or add his own promise. He merely hugged Goten and punched Trunks lightly on the shoulder, said "Bye, mom, everyone," and disappeared to Otherworld. _

There was going to be some work to do if Goku was going to stay in the Living World.

:-:-:-:

Three Weeks Later: Seven Years after the Cell Games 

It had been hard work for Gohan, but he had finally convinced Baba and King Yemma to let Goku return to the Living World. Goku had not known what Gohan was doing, and as a consequence when he found out, he was shocked. However, he had not complained about it, but had simply been surprised that Gohan had guessed that Goku regretted missing seven years of Goten's life.

Goku had been plotting on his own to return to the Living World anyway.

It was still a good idea that Gohan did all the work, though. Goku probably would have botched the job and ended up staying for the rest of Goten's childhood in Otherworld before Baba and Yemma would even _think_ about granting him life again. Gohan snorted at the thought. Yes, it was quite a good thing that Gohan had done it for him.

At the present, Gohan was standing next to a reflector's pool looking down at the Living World. Goku had just appeared and was talking animatedly to Chichi, who flung herself, sobbing, at her husband after a few more seconds. Gohan couldn't actually hear what was going on, but he could imagine, like the rest of us, what was going on.

Goten added his appearance to the melee a few moments later; he, too, sprang toward Goku in a whirlwind of flesh, color, and a yell. "DADDY!" Gohan could see the yell on Goten's lips and felt a rush of something akin to gleeful satisfaction that he could have brought such happiness into his brother's life. That was all he lived for these days now, well, not _lived_ precisely, but more like _existed_, if you catch my meaning. Hehe! It made his heart lift and the work that he'd put into this momentous occasion suddenly seemed worthwhile.

Of course, he hadn't started right away; he'd had some catching-up to do, especially in pranks with Cell and the others in the Home For Infinite Losers (that group had gotten soft while he'd been away; Gohan had quickly rectified that in a series of quick and brutal monkeyshines). _Then _he'd gotten a gift from Osi and Ron to replace Arikeru; _that_ had been surprising enough. To think that he know needed _more_ weapons training... Sheesh, _he_ himself was a weapon! One that was, well, not quite _alive_, per say, but still existing! But _no_, he had to have a weapon, as in a physical weapon so that he wouldn't be attacked quite as often.

Gohan had retorted that he'd actually be attacked _more_ often if everyone saw him with a weapon, but the Osi siblings were not listening to him. Every time Gohan brought the subject up, the siblings would stare blandly at him and then ignore him whenever he tried to say something; finally the demi-Saiyan had just given up and accepted the _naginata_ that he'd received in place of Arikeru.

To top it all off, however, they'd also informed him that it still needed a name, as well.

This only created more work for him, as he actually had to _think_ now, of a proper name for his new and rather vicious-looking spear. Only in place of an arrowhead metal tip, a huge wave-edged 2-foot knife, or dagger, or something that could describe what it was topped the spear. In fact, the blade on top of the spear (which was as tall as Gohan was even _without_ the blade) was more of a cross between a knife and an axe, it was so strange-looking. But what was strange-looking was also rather maleficent; this naginata could cut down the third-thickest tree in Otherworld (although the tree _did_ grow back in a matter of days) with a single slice. No doubt anything less sturdy in its way would suffer quite the same gruesome fate as the poor tree.

The naginata and the beginning of _those_ lessons were not the majority of what kept Gohan so busy, though. It was the sheer size of the homework load that had been waiting for the demi-Saiyan when he returned home for the last time that was. Gohan had been, shockingly, neglecting his homework during the World Martial Arts Tournament, and as he got _quite a bit_ of homework every day, seven days of unattended homework was, well, shall we put this bluntly?

A mountain.

A mountain of paperwork had teetered gracefully before Gohan as the dead warrior had gaped open-mouthed at it. King Yemma had said nothing about Gohan skipping his homework assignments, not even when the paperwork had overcome its status of being a hill. I don't think the King even _told_ Gohan that he was going to have homework during the WMAT festivities, but somehow Gohan got wind of it and decided to ignore it, for some reason.

Bad, bad Gohan. (Shakes head and _tsks_ at him) Bad.

Not that I blame him. Heh!

As such, the first two weeks were actually spent in emending the homework problem. _Then _for two days after that, Gohan was caught up in naginata lessons. The third day was depleted in visiting Goten and listening to the younger brother's excited gibber about how Goku had tried to talk to him through Northie using the telepathic powers of said Kaio. However, Northie had protested, and not for the first time, at being used like a telephone; however, when Chichi had suggested that they use Bulma's holographic projector, Goku had quickly backed off.

Gohan had snorted with laughter at that.

So, the fourth and fifth days went by, in which Gohan tried to fend off more lessons from the Osi siblings and barrage about the name. It really had taken only one day for Gohan to convince Baba and King Yemma; all he'd had to mention was "Goten" and _bang!_ The matter was closed.

_THINNNNNNN! _There goes the sound of a large body of people face-faulting! LOL!

Still, Gohan had had to survive quite a bit to get to that point, so he _did_ put in a lot of work to get his dad into the Living World! Of course, Gohan couldn't really die, but that's beside the point (and so is the fact that you _can_ die a second time, only it's oblivion for you this time around heh!). Jeez, let's have a little sympathy for him now...

The readers only look strangely at the authoress, who smiles innocently.

As Gohan stood at the reflector's pool, Baba came whizzing up on her crystal ball. "So, _lokak_, do you think that your day of _work_ was worth it?" she drawled, glancing at the image in the water. Gohan just Looked™ at the millennia-old fortune teller (Baba: HEY! I'm not THAT old, ya kid! SP: Riiiiiiiiight... Baba: _Kilashiwen._ (Mutters) Kids these days. Got no respect for their elders... SP: That's right! (Beams)), who cackled in turn.

"Yeah, I thought so. And how are your pig-sticker lessons going?" the witch inquired, nastily.

Gohan outright Glared™ at the crystal ball-riding old crone (Baba: (Growls)) this time. "This is _not_ a pig-sticker, you _witch_," Gohan hissed. "It's a glaive, and I would appreciate it if you would _stop_ calling it that!"

Baba did have the nerve to point out, "You yourself aren't exactly comfortable with it yourself; _you_ call it a _stick_ with a _axe-knife_ on the top of it!"

"It's my weapon, I can call it whatever I want!" Gohan retorted, whirling the object of the argument in his fingers. He stopped quickly, however, when it started sliding out of his fingers; obviously those years with the Power Pole were long since forgotten. Sheesh.

"See? That _stick_ obviously senses your disrespect; it's almost falling out of your fingers! I say that you find its name and find it quick or else—"

Baba was cut off by a sharp, "What _is_ it with everyone telling me to find its name already?" Gohan rebutted, his black eyes intense. "And don't tell me it's because you enjoy nagging me," he added as the lamia opened her mouth. She scowled, for that had been _exactly_ what she had been about to say, before Gohan had beaten her to it.

So she said instead, with a patient air, "If you've got a weapon in your hand and you don't name it for some time, its value gets dulled and it's practically useless to you. On the other hand, if you name it right away, _then_ it attunes itself to you and becomes one with you. _That_ is the benefit of having a named weapon instead of an unnamed one, as it absorbs your power and part of your soul. In battle, it will react instantly to your thoughts, almost seeming as if it's acting on its own, without waiting for your body to wield it."

Gohan listened attentively, but he ruined the mood with, "I know. I read all before." Before Baba could bristle and yell at him for making her go on and on about named weapons, he added, plaintively, "That's the problem, though. I don't _want_ another extension of my soul. I _had_ one with Arikeru, and you saw where _it_ ended up!"

Baba, expressionless, hovered up and down on her crystal ball for a few silent seconds. "You know as well as I do, _lokak_, that you aren't going to have Arikeru forever," she said quietly. Gohan blinked, but Baba was her usual brusque self as she zoomed away again. "Concentrate on finding a name for that pig-sticker, youngster! _And do your homework!_"

Gohan stared after her, still blinking. "Well, that was weird." Shrugging, he looked down at his glaive waiting patiently for him. "All right, let's go practice, Hageshiijutsu." (1)

_THINNNNNNNN!_ This time it's the authoress. :D

However, when Gohan cleared his mind and started to practice, he didn't notice the glow that his glaive started to give off. It grew brighter and brighter as he whipped it onto a whirling pattern of cuts, thrusts, and lunges, then suddenly vanished as Gohan abruptly arrested his movements with a heavy stamp. The demi-Saiyan stood with the naginata in his hands, his feet spread apart, and his chest heaving lightly up and down from the slight exertion he'd just put himself through. There was a fierce look in his eyes that came from his concentration, but it showed his inner peace, not a savage nature as would normally be thought.

All in all, Gohan looked quite normal. :D

But he was not done. With a smooth slide of his muscles, Gohan swung the weapon over and leveled it right in the face of his only spectator: Goku.

Only it wasn't Goku, precisely. This person looked older, more mature. There was also the matter of his strange dress: black body armor reminiscent of the days of the Saiyans, blood-red handless gloves stretching to just below his elbow, blood-red leg warmers reaching to just below his knees, black spandex pants, and bulging black fighting boots laced up with red string covering the leg warmers. His father would _never_ wear that kind of thing: he'd been raised with the loose gis of Gohan Sr. and Master Roshi, although the boots were the same style. Hmm...

The grin on this Goku's face was not quite the same Grin™ that his father wore, either. It was more like Vegeta's, but not quite as sadistic. It would make sense, as well, for no one could be more sadistic than Vegeta, Prince of all Saiyans.

"That's some nice control over that glaive you have, kid," the Goku look-alike said (What is it with all these Goku clones popping up everywhere? Sheesh!). Gohan straightened brusquely and bowed to accept the compliment from the stranger.

"Thanks," Gohan replied. He was still not out of the funk practicing with Hageshii (as he decided to nickname the glaive already), that is, the intense, concentrated state, and so he was in no mood for extended, drawn-out conversations.

His guest didn't seem to get it, though. "How long have you been practicing with it?" he asked, smirking slightly. This one obviously expected it _not_ what the answer was.

"Three weeks," Gohan shrugged. A tiny smile cracked Gohan's facade as the other warrior's eyes bugged out slightly. He whistled slightly and shook his head, obviously impressed.

"Whoa. Even _I _wouldn't be able to do that kind of thing _that_ quickly," he muttered. "Not that I get things easily, mind you," he assured Gohan. Gohan quirked an eyebrow but didn't comment as his father's doppelganger went on. "But still, it usually takes a lot longer than _three weeks_ to master a glaive, and a huge one at that."

Gohan Grinned™ outright at that, somewhat startling the other warrior, although for more reasons than getting an actual smile out of an apparent stoic. Another shrug accompanied Gohan's next statement, which was, "I just named this weapon, so I have no idea what's going on, either."

This time Gohan's new friend was definitely startled. "You _just_ named it? No wonder it was glowing then. You're the original wielder." Gohan nodded, but he had to ask.

"It was glowing?"

"While you were doing your kata."

"Ah. Small wonder I didn't see it then. I was too busy _doing_ the kata to notice anything else," Gohan said wryly. This comment garnered another smirk from the older man, who looked waay too much like Goku for Gohan to feel comfortable. There must****be_someone _cloning his father or something; this was too much.

"So what's its name? The glaive," the warrior nodded to the smooth staff in Gohan's hands.

"Hageshiijutsu. What's yours?" Gohan challenged, the spark in his eyes rejoining Gohan's traditional smirk.

"Ah," the other man smiled in turn. "It's Bardock."

"Gohan," the eighteen-year-old responded. They shook hands, neither of them testing the others' strength, and released each other. "I've heard of you, Bardock. What are you doing here all the way from HFIL? Aren't you supposed to be one of the Saiyans who perished with Vegeta-sei at the hands of Frieza?"

"So many questions!" Bardock laughed. Gohan Grinned™ again and waited for his grandfather's answer, although of course Bardock didn't know that just yet. "It's my thirty-fifth year in HFIL (SP: I think? It might actually be thirty-two years. (Winces)). I was let out for a day to wander around the Otherworld on account of the fact that I've been here a number of years that is divisible by seven, the lucky number. That, and I've been behaving. Some of the other guys in HFIL, they don't have the same privileges." The warrior smirked. Gohan developed a knowing look of his own as the full Saiyan continued,

"And how do you know about the Saiyans who perished with Vegeta-sei? It wasn't exactly an intergalactical event, even though Lord Frieza was." Bardock paused for a moment. "Although... with all the planets we purged on _his_ orders, it may well have been. Was your planet one we purged? If so, I'm sorry."

Gohan shook his head. "No, you didn't purge my planet, although Frieza tried." He didn't offer any more information, but instead switched onto another track. "So what _are_ you doing here in Upper Heaven with all us heroes?" he teased.

Bardock snorted. Whether it was derisive or just a reaction to Gohan's tease, even I do not know (SHOCK!). "I'm looking for my son, Kakkarot. I heard that he was dead."

"Oh, you just missed him. He went back to the Living World two hours ago."

"The Living World? Can you do that?" asked an obviously stunned Bardock. This was a day full of surprises for the long-dead warrior. Really, it was possible to go back to the Living World? Was Kakkarot still dead, then?

"Is my son dead, though? Kakkarot cannot still be alive if he was here in the Otherworld," Bardock demanded, his surprises causing him to be a little ruder than he really wanted to be. Of course, being a Saiyan didn't exactly inspire confidence in his manners, but HFIL was good for _something_ after all.

"Oh no, Dad's not dead. He was granted life again to spend more time with his son. Of course, _I_ was the one who convinced King Yemma to give him the life, but whatever," Gohan said matter-of-factly. He got no answer but a glazed stare from his Saiyan grandfather, which only made a small smirk appear on his own face. Really, he loved shocking people. With the truth, no less.

"I—I really have been out of the loop for a while, haven't I?" Bardock muttered almost inaudibly. Gohan nodded energetically, resembling _Goten_ for a second, then lunged for Bardock's arm as his grandfather attempted to fall down.

"Whoa, there, don't want to injure yourself," Gohan teased again. Bardock just looked up at Gohan, who was quite a few centimeters taller than he, and shook his head. Something jiggled at the back of his mind however, about the sentence Gohan had just said. Frowning, his brows contracting together in a heavy movement, Bardock looked up again at Gohan.

"Dad?" he asked. Gohan immediately grinned and nodded. "My son is your father?" Bardock asked again. Once more Gohan nodded, and again he lunged for Bardock as the warrior fell down. This time he didn't quite make it in time, and Bardock landed with a loud _thud_ on the dusty pink (or orange? I can't remember) grass of Otherworld.

"Are you all right, Bardock-sofu?" Gohan leaned over the prone figure on the ground, whose eyes were spinning round and round like rather dull pinwheels.

"Hnnn…?" was Gohan's only answer. Gohan smirked and waited patiently, his naginata held in the crook of his crossed arms as he hunkered down. The smirk disappeared after fifteen minutes, when Bardock was still not recovered, and after half an hour, as Bardock still was not up, Gohan decided to do some poking.

Grinning evilly, he reached out a finger and jabbed Bardock in the side, but there was no reaction. The second time, Bardock smacked the finger away, opening one eye to glare at an innocent Gohan. The eye closed, and Gohan attempted to strike a third time, only to get caught.

"Gotcha!" Bardock growled triumphantly. Gohan neatly took away the advantage by karate-chopping his grandfather with his other hand. The demi-Saiyan leapt up and was away as Bardock forward-flipped (instead of back-flipped, get it?) to his feet and chased after him. The game was taken rather easily to the air, as Gohan jumped into it and soared from Bardock. Gohan's grandfather was not to be so easily shaken off, however: he, too, employed his ki to levitate him into the air. He took off after Gohan, who Grinned™ at him impishly, and was led on a merry wild goose chase throughout the skies of Otherworld.

"You can't catch me, old man!" Gohan shouted over his shoulder five minutes later. Bardock growled savagely and strained for the boy just beyond his reach. Every time he got close, however, the demi-Saiyan just sped further out of his range, dancing on the fringes and taunting Bardock with his speed.

The Saiyan then narrowed his eyes and halted, checking his forward momentum in a rush. Closing his eyes, he composed himself, pushing out Gohan's taunts, and closed himself off, so that nothing else could enter through. He opened his eyes to see Gohan still hovering beyond his range, curiosity tainting his ki for a single second before comprehension drowned it out. Gohan's pulsating ki signature sped away again and Bardock was off, speeding after his grandson faster than ever before. This was a race to prove Gohan's worth as a Saiyan, and the grandfather was determined not to make it easy for him.

Several times Bardock almost overcame Gohan, and twice they were neck-to-neck, but Gohan never allowed Bardock to have the lead, even when it meant rushing through some very close forests to do so. Bardock, weirdly enough, never had the feeling that Gohan was holding back just for the fun of having someone new to chase with, although that was the truth, as we know it.

Unlike Osi and Ron, Bardock was not afraid to blast through some things just so that he didn't lose time going over them. Goten and Trunks were like this, but Gohan preferred to not let them do that, as he would undoubtedly be killed a second time (SP: Humph, yeah right) if he let harm befall _any_ of the children, which included Marron and any other people that were born to the Z-senshi/their descendants.

Because of these facts, it was undoubtedly a lot more fun to race with Bardock, ultimately, than it was to race with Goten and Trunks. This was much faster, much more unexpected, and even more dangerous, not that either Saiyan would be hurt by the things they crashed into. Okay, perhaps a serious concussion or two, but nothing great….

"Yowch! Blasted tree!" …OK! It seems that I have miswritten! I think… yes, it was Gohan who yelled that, although he didn't stop to assess what the damage might have been to that poor tree. Bardock didn't stop, either, not that he would, for what does a Saiyan care about trees? They're not that useful…. Plastic works a lot better for anything that wood might be utilized for. Distasteful, really, the dependency some races had upon trees…. (SP: (Shakes head resignedly) Saiyans….)

As the race continued, there were more grunts of impact and curses, but neither was willing to give up. Both of the warriors had great amounts of endurance built up from a number of resources, the common one of which included fighting for so long. This endurance allowed both fighters to go at top speed for a long time, although Gohan certainly wasn't going at top speed, and to endure getting hit by the objects that they flew between.

As such, they had traversed quite a bit of the Upper Heaven before either showed signs of flagging, Bardock more than Gohan. The Saiyan wouldn't admit it, though, and kept his mouth clamped even when Gohan called to him, "Had enough?" Gohan had expected an answer, anyway, but it was the thought that counted.

The implication that Bardock couldn't keep up with his "upstart" youngster of a grandson spurred the Saiyan to greater speeds. These speeds only worsened the problem, however, and he soon slowed again, letting Gohan get farther ahead of him. The demi-Saiyan kept tabs on the ki of his grandfather, though, even as he continually pressed further out of sight, and stopped completely when Bardock slowed to a speed as to rival a tortoise's.

Gohan had to admit, the old man certainly didn't stop for anything, not even his own health. Such was the pride of all Saiyans, not just the one Saiyan Prince, the demi-Saiyan reflected, waiting for his grandfather to catch up. What was it with all the Saiyans, except Goku, that did not allow for their pride to be damaged in any way? Gohan curled into the lotus position to ponder it, taking no notice of the sweat that crawled down his face from the exertion of ki. Bardock's ki was still a long way off, and at the rate he was going, Gohan was going to be able to get a worthwhile meditation in.

While Bardock crept closer and closer, Gohan thought about the mentality of the Saiyans and for what reasons they all boasted such arrogance and pride. Was it because they were such feared and hated planet-purgers? Was it because they were _favored_ (SP and Gohan: (Snort ironically)) by Frieza? Or was it simply because of their national identity as tough warriors fully cognizant of the use of ki? Whatever it was, this conceit had led to the Saiyans' downfall, just as it had preceded the downfall of Frieza and the Cold Family. In fact, pride was the downfall of everybody: Cell, Dabura, Double Pui, Babidi, even Shin and Kibito, to an extent.

Pride did no one any good; why did everybody insist upon being prideful? There was no point in taking pride and being content with your abilities. Those abilities were always, always, _always_ offset by some other ability out there in the universe, no matter what it was. Gohan vowed never to take his powers for granted, but to practice them all and learn, theoretically or in practice, every capability that he could.

So, if some villain struck the Earth or some nearby planet and had an ability that wasn't able to be defeated by "ordinary" means, but had a weakness that Gohan knew how to exploit, the research would be well worth the effort. Gohan would be able to protect Goten and his family, and Goten's descendants if it came to that, with the information he had, and the resolution that he had made that led to this gathering of information, and all would be well.

He could count on Baba to give him motivation when he needed it. Now, if this resolution meant that Gohan would have to learn and learn thoroughly the art of the glaive, then he would do that. Hageshiijutsu would not be wasted on him; he would train with the weapon until he knew it inside and out and vice versa. Perhaps, as Gohan was the original namer, his glaive would be able to talk to him? Preferably in corporeal weapon form, not spiritual, like Arikeru. It would be interesting to see how the mindset of a glaive differed from that of a sword's. Yes, yes, it would.

He would have to share these lessons with his otouto.

He opened his eyes just in time to see Bardock stop, wearily, in front of him. Gohan immediately unfolded from his position and started clapping, saying, "Not bad, ojiichan. Not bad at all."

Bardock glared weakly at the familiarity with which Gohan addressed him already (SP: Heh! (Sweatdrops)). "Don't call me Grandpa so soon; we don't know each other well enough for that," he growled. Gohan was not impressed with the effort.

"Come now, Bardock-sofu, don't you want to meet your living relatives? As in your son, your daughter-in-law, and your other grandson?" Gohan asked, casually stuffing his hands into the pockets of his pants. He raised his eyebrow at the Look™ Bardock simply gave him.

"If they are anything like you," Bardock huffed out, "then I despair for my afterlife."

Gohan guffawed loudly, throwing his head back and letting the sweet sound sail into the air. Bardock had to grin in answer, floating quietly closer to his grandson all the while. As Gohan continued to laugh, Bardock lunged and tackled the surprised form of Gohan in midair. They went down to the ground in a tumble of legs and arms, although Gohan rescued them both from a very jarring landing just in time.

Gohan lay spread out on the ground, having been tripped up again by a short of breath Bardock. The more tired of the two warriors didn't have the energy to do anything else, but he did will a message into his grandson's head.

_Gotta have the last word, gaki. _

Gohan's laughter was his only answer.

:-:-:-:

(1) Translated loosely: "the art of ferocious attacks". Heh! I'm not entirely sure if that's right, but it's better than the name I was originally going to give it: Zankokunajinkaku, or "vicious personality". Yikes! I didn't like the "vicious" part of it, though, so I scrapped it and went for a much shorter name. :)

(2) Bardock-sofu: Translated literally from right to left: "Grandfather Bardock".

(3) ojiichan: grandpa

(4) gaki: brat

:-:-:-:

A/n: Aw…. (Smiles affectionately)

OK, I was seriously NOT intending for Bardock to come onto the scene until much later in the fic. He was insistent upon being known, however, and simply burst out exactly when I did _not_ want him. Ahhh, well, that's Saiyans for you, eh, Vegeta? (Snickers)

OK, what was up with Gohan switching to "ojiichan" so quickly? Was he simply taunting poor Bardock-sofu? Or was he trying to be charming? Eh, eh? Either way, Gohan only got a glare…. I wonder what the authoress has in mind for the next episode of **Vigilante Angel**? (Wondering) Oh, wait… _I'm_ the authoress, aren't I? Yeah. Hehe! (Sweatdrops profusely) FINE! I wonder where the MUSE has gone, let's put it that way. (Looks pointedly around office for MIA muse) Mm-hmm…

Well, then, I hope to see you next chapter! Please visit my website for reviews, as usual, it's still being neglected—er, I mean, it's under construction, that is to say, uh… yeah. Fine! LOL!

I also have a livejournal, due to the many nags I've gotten from one of my many friends, **Salazarfalcon**. Please take the time to check out what you can of my life…. I've got a little part of a new DBZ fic up there that I'm not showing here…. (Grins maliciously)

My reviewers, **miroku-has-darkness**,** duckmasta2020**,** DBZ Chick1**, **MarshmellowDragon**,** Briememory**, **Tiara Shin**, and **SSJ3MysticGohan**, thank you most energetically for your marvelous reviews! (Glomps) It is you who makes me guilty enough to write….

Sayonara!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 08.03.05_


	41. Chapter the Fortieth: Pathology

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fortieth

Disclaimer: And _why_ are you asking me to do this? This is the forty-first time! (Exasperated) Ahh, fine. Fine, I don't Dragonball Z. (Huffs and crosses arms angrily)

Disclaimer Two: (Authoress points to Chapter the Twenty-seventh crossly)

A/n: I'm back, my darling readers! (Crickets chirp) Waaa…. FINE! Just go and enjoy! I won't even apologize for being so late! Hmpf!

Aline: I doubt that they really care, SP.

Shaddup, you! _You're_ the one whose fault this is, blasted muse! (Strains for muse, intending to throttle her)

Aline: (Dodges) Swine authoress. (Deadpan) Enjoy, dear readers, while I continue to dodge this crazy authoress' attempts to strangle me. Sayonara!

Why, you! (Lunges, misses) Shimatta! (Curses in Japanese)

:-:-:-:

Earlier, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Gohan lay spread out on the ground, having been tripped up again by a short of breath Bardock. The more tired of the two warriors didn't have the energy to do anything else, but he did will a message into his grandson's head. _

Gotta have the last word, gaki.

_Gohan's laughter was his only answer. _

:-:-:-:

**One Year Later: Eight Years after the Cell Games**

Gohan crouched next to the reflecting pool, grinning crazily at the image he beheld.

Goten and Trunks were sneaking up on Goku, whom was pretending not to see them. At the last minute, Goku swung around and caught them, Grinning™ hugely at their groans of disappointment. Gohan chuckled and stood up, allowing the image to disperse as he stretched. He looked this way and that, a smirk marring his scarred face as he saw that no one was looking at him. He'd been more closely looked at since that silly old prank on the Grand Kaio... to bad he'd gotten caught.

Gohan grimaced at the recollection.

He'd been stupid enough to leave his toolkit behind, and he'd paid for it with the suspension of his roaming rights, where he'd been allowed to go to any part of the Upper Heaven other than the North Kaio's place, as well as any other place in Otherworld. This had also affected his guardian angel privilege; he had been restricted to only visiting Goten if his charge had serious need for him.

It had been a boring three weeks, that was for sure.

But now he was out, and it was time to return to his routine.

With a final smirk, the nineteen-year-old (SP: Mein Gott, Gohan's _old_ now! Eek! (Staggers dramatically)) disappeared from Otherworld.

He reappeared again in midair, just in time to catch a wayward Trunks. Goten soon followed, but Gohan had to dodge Goku, sending him whooshing by with only centimeters to spare. The Saiyan almost fall flat to the Earth, so astonished was he.

Trunks struggled valiantly in Gohan's iron grasp, while Goten simply twisted in Gohan's arm to look at him.

"Gohan!" the squirtling cried, throwing his arms around his brother's neck. Trunks finally wrenched free and whirled to face his "attacker", his defensive stance coming easily to him. Once he saw it was Gohan, though, the nine-year-old relaxed, a scowl on his face.

"Geez, Gohan, don't _do_ that to me," the demi-Saiyan commented. Gohan smirked at him, even as Trunks continued, "You scared the living daylights out of me."

"Well, _sorry_," Gohan sniped back, before he turned his attention to the boy in his arms.

Goten, like Gohan, had grown in the past year, though not as much as Gohan, whom still wasn't finished growing. The eight-year-old was beginning to lose some of his baby fat, though it was not much. He would not lose it completely until he was fourteen or fifteen, but it was a start.

He still looked adorable (SP: )

Aside from growing taller, Goten was changing in other ways. He didn't' resemble his father so much at this age, not so much in the appearance, but rather in maturity, or a beginning of. Goten now had an atmosphere about him that instead reminded people vaguely of Gohan. Perhaps it was the fact that Chichi's torture—err, that is to say, _teaching_ (SP: Hehe! (Sweatdrops)) was finally getting through to him? To Gohan, it didn't matter; Goten was Goten, and his little brother would always be just that, no matter what he became or what changes he went through.

Other things that marked Goten's ascent (or is it descent? I can't quite decide) to maturity were...

Well, why don't I just leave those for later and get on with the chapter:)

(Mixed cheers and boos are heard, but the authoress ignores them and steadfastly moves on)

So, yeah, Goten was hugging his big brother, while Gohan sniped sarcastically at Trunks for scaring the living daylights out of him. Yeah, okay, got it. Moving on.

"Hi, otoutochan, did you miss me?" Gohan asked, an eyebrow lifting. Goten blinked at him and Smiled™ brilliantly. "Of course I did!" the youngest Son yelled, traces of indignation creeping into his voice. Gohan relaxed, Smiling™ back. He hadn't exactly been sure if his younger brother _had_ missed him after all, considering that Goten had hardly been bored for the last three weeks while Gohan was gone. There was Goku, Trunks, Chichi, and also Marron, whom had been coming over much more frequently to hang out with Goten and Trunks.

Of course, the boys had at first been reluctant to let her play with them, but when they had found out that she could throw a ki blast as well as the both of them, both Goten and Trunks had been more accepting of her. Marron had also proved that she could keep up with them in other ways, such as flying and even fighting, though obviously she couldn't go as far as they could, and she was less interested in martial arts, as well.

"Good," Gohan said. "Wouldn't want you to forget your older brother, now would you?" He grinned again at the full-blown expression of indignation that settled on the pre-preteen countenance, and went to meet Goku and Trunks standing (or rather floating LOL) off to the side.

"How about you, Trunks? Did you miss me?" Gohan smirked, expecting a typical Trunks-ish answer to his childish question. He wasn't disappointed.

"Miss you? Why would I miss you?" Trunks retorted incredulously. "Missing people is for girls."

"Then you have to say you're a girl, right? 'Cuz I can tell that you really did miss me," Gohan teased immediately. He frowned when Trunks' hackles went up, obviously from a negative reaction to being teased. The elementary-school-aged demi-Saiyan narrowed his (lavender?) eyes and crossed his arms, staring at Gohan through those tight slits as if the dead warrior were an enemy. Gohan narrowed his own eyes back, not pleased and confused with what was happening.

What had happened to make Trunks so edgy that he couldn't take a harmless jibe? Clearly, he needed to talk to the other demi-Saiyan.

Choosing to leave that for later for the time being, Gohan turned to Goku.

"Hey, Dad," he greeted. "Long time no see."

"You got that right," Goku laughed. "What kept you away, trouble with Baba?"

Gohan made a face. "Yeah," he grunted. "All I did was play a prank on the Grand Kaio," he whined indignantly, drastically underplaying the whole situation as he was wont to do. Goku burst into laughter as Gohan added, "But then I had to get caught and sentenced to three weeks of just being in King Kaio's section of Upper Heaven, nowhere else. Of course, that included the Living World, so long as Goten or Trunks didn't need me for anything extreme."

Out of the corner of his eye, Gohan watched Trunks' expression lighten. When the dead warrior turned to the middle demi-Saiyan, Trunks offered him a small smirk, one that Gohan returned with a wicked one of his own.

Still, he could sense the frustration and the anger that Trunks was holding inside of him. These emotions were caused by something else, but this was buried deep where Gohan couldn't find it, and so therefore Trunks couldn't either. Such emotional intensity and depth in such a young person was astounding...

Having gone through the same thing himself, Gohan knew what he was talking about. Yes, he really had to talk to Trunks. Soon, as well, or else the demi-Saiyan would explode.

This would not necessarily be a bad thing; it could cause Trunks to attain Super Saiyan Two.

On the other hand, Trunks certainly would not feel any better for it. The anger and the frustration would just go on until the source was located and dealt with.

Good thing Gohan was there to do just that.

"All right, what do we want to do today? What were you doing before I arrived?" Gohan asked. He had first to set up a situation where he and Trunks were sufficiently alone before they could talk.

"Dad was chasing Trunks and me because we were trying to jump on him," Goten volunteered.

Gohan winced. "Goten, that's 'Trunks and I'. Don't let mom know you said that, or you'll be studying more and playing less," he remarked. He nodded knowingly, smiling insincerely, as Goten's eyes grew wide. Trunk snorted, but didn't say anything.

"Yeah," Gohan continued, keeping an eye on Trunks. If he did this right… "So, why don't I let you keep on doing that? I'll stay out of your way."

Goten and Goku's faces lit up. Trunks just looked away and shook his head.

"Nah, I don't want to do that anymore," he said. Gohan grinned inwardly. The kid fell for it, hook, line, and sinker.

"Ohhh!" Goten groaned. Goku wisely (SP: O.O) stayed out of this and said nothing. Gohan merely raised his eyebrows and said cheerfully:

"Okay, then, Goten, Dad, why don't you go ahead, while Trunks and I stay here? We'll do something, don't worry."

Goten remained hesitant, but Goku stepped up. He recognized that something, he didn't know what (SP: Heh), was going on here, and both he and Goten were not a part of it. Thwacking Goten hard on the shoulder, Goku shouted, "Tag, you're it! Catch me if you can!" he sped off, shooting a quick glance over his shoulder at Goten. The littlest demi-Saiyan whirled and flew after him, clamoring, "Hey! That's not fair! Get back hereeeeee!"

Gohan chuckled as the sight of his brother's growing body disappeared within a matter of minutes. Gyrating to Trunks, Gohan observed calmly the loneliness surfacing on Trunks' face. The expression withdrew as the half-human stared up at Gohan and blinked.

Still calm, Gohan crouched and met Trunks' eyes on an even plateau so that his friend wouldn't feel forced to subjugate himself to Gohan. In reality, that was sort of what he was doing, if things went right (SP: With Trunks around, you never know…), but it was the feelings that counted in this case, not the actuality.

"All right, Trunks, what's bothering you?" The elder hybrid asked. Trunks appeared startled, and he took a step back. As he was in midair, this was a bad move.

"Ack!" Trunks yelped, his foot landing on nothing. Gohan grabbed Trunks' arm and kept him from falling too much, hauling the demi back up to level.

"Okay there, Trunks?" Gohan asked, once Trunks had regained his balance. He nodded distractedly, keeping his head down. Gohan reached out and placed two fingers under Trunks' chin. Trunks met his black eyes with something akin to fear, an instinct ingrained into him after years of his father's "Emotions are weak, nothing should get to you" lecture.

Gohan, knowing this, merely smiled, in a reassuring way he hoped. Trunks gulped, his wide eyes frozen on Gohan's, the mirrors of his soul showing a great conflict. Gohan simply watched him, letting Trunks decide with no interference from the outside.

Violet eyes remained locked with black, as war raged between two parts of Trunks' inner self. One part wanted desperately to tell someone, anyone, about his feelings, his problems, and have sympathy for them. The other part insisted that he couldn't say anything, that warriors didn't reveal their feelings, only weaklings did. And yet here was Gohan, practically his older brother, who was willing to listen, so much that he was _telling_ Trunks to let out his feelings, not asking. It also didn't help that Gohan had spotted Trunks' distress right away, when Trunks had been trying so hard to keep it hidden.

He could take it no more.

"It's my parents," the crossbreed burst out. He immediately kicked himself in the head for his inability to keep things to himself, but Gohan prodded him on. "They're talking about having another baby."

Gohan's eyebrows shot up straight into the air, well, as far up his forehead as they could go, anyway, LOL.

Trunks nodded miserably in response to Gohan's reaction. "Yeah, he croaked, his voice breaking. "Am I so weak that my parents don't love me anymore? Am I so bad—"

"No, Trunks," Gohan interrupted. Trunks was hyperventilating with the intensity of his agony, and this was not something that Gohan wanted to see. "_No_, do you hear me? You are not weak, or bad. You are actually one of the strongest people I know, to be able to live with your father as you do. Trunks, listen to me," he commanded.

Wide lavender eyes fixed hungrily, desperately onto Gohan's firm black eyes once more. Gohan told the owner of those eyes, slowly and carefully, "Trunks, you are a strong person. To be able to live with your dad like you do and not manage to blast him to the outer reaches of HFIL in the process is amazing to me. Kami and the Kaios know that _I_ wouldn't be able to do that, and I have known Vegeta for far longer than you have. I know him _better_, in some cases (SP: Yeah, fighting with him does tend to give ya some insight into his character, eh, Gohan?), but I still can't tolerate him twenty-four seven as you can.

"Now, this may seem unbelievable, because you see me getting along with him fairly well, right?" Trunks was already nodding, having calmed down slightly. "But I don't _always_ get along with him. True, we haven't had an argument or a spar yet, but I think that's because I don't spend enough time around him for that to happen. Do you understand?"

Trunks nodded again, his body visibly relaxing. Gohan smiled then, relaxing himself, but continued to talk, knowing this wasn't over.

"As for your parents talking about more babies, well, I don't know what's going through their heads, but I can assure you that they don't love you less. If they are not proud of you for being who you are, then there is something seriously wrong with them," Gohan dictated imperiously. Trunks cracked a small smile, a vast improvement over the returned look of anxiety upon the mention of his parents. "If they are not proud of you, which is something I doubt, then _I_ am proud of you in their place, and with them."

A look of wonder permeated Trunks' usually mischievous face, smoothing the lines until an actual nine-year-old hovered in front of Gohan. A true smile swam into view on that selfsame child's face, and the world was brighter for it.

Gohan smiled back.

"Now, Trunks, I want you to talk to your parents about this. I want you to tell them how you felt, how this decision will affect you, and I want you to tell them flat out what you think they should do. They will listen to you, believe me, because they really do want your opinion on this. Believe me, Trunks, believe me," Gohan commanded.

Trunks acquiesced, but reluctantly. Nodding, Gohan stood up and stretched his legs. They had become cramped during his talk with Trunks.

Looking down at the purple-haired troublemaker before him, Gohan ruffled the violet hair in question and said, "You can always come to me, Trunks. I may not always be willing to help you, or be able to, but you can always count on me, all right?"

A brighter smile and a nod were his answers. Grinning™, Gohan declared, "Then you're it!" He turned his tail and ran, smiling madly as a provoked Trunks soared after him. Goten and Goku were drawn into the game a minute later, and all four of them had fun.

:-:-:-:

It turned out that Trunks didn't have to talk to either Bulma or Vegeta about it. They had decided on their own that they wouldn't have another baby, not until later at least. Still, Gohan pressured Trunks, and finally the demi-Saiyan did it.

Gohan waited in an area just outside Capsule, where he wouldn't be noticed, and waited for Trunks to come to him with the news. While he waited, he mused that it was a good thing that he'd told Goten that he was going to come today for Trunks. Goten had been curious and even jealous, but Gohan had handled him deftly.

Now his little brother was hanging out quite good-naturedly with Krillin, 18, Marron, Chichi, and Goku. It was Krillin's wish to see Goku all the time that 18 and Marron kept coming over, and as a result, Chichi and 18 were on more relatively good terms, and Goten and Trunks were getting to know Marron better.

When Baba had discovered that Gohan had once again popped down to the Living World the instant that he had been let off probation, as it were, Gohan had thought that he would be suspended again. Luckily, the witch had remembered that Gohan was no longer barred from his extraneous guardian angel duties, and had gone away on her speedy crystal ball muttering darkly.

Gohan sweatdropped (SP: As do I LOL) at the thought.

It was only seconds later that Trunks zoomed out of Capsule and headed for the skies, whooping wildly. Gohan grinned and took off after him, knowing that Trunks had just had a very good experience with his parents, _both_ of them. Likely Bulma had had fun terrorizing Vegeta into not pressurizing Trunks so, but it was inconsequential. What mattered was that Trunks was feeling great, and therefore had a better relationship with his family than he previously did.

Gohan had the feeling that he would still have to push Trunks to admit his feelings to his family, but as long as the demi-Saiyan did it, Gohan wouldn't mind.

Existence was awesome right about now.

:-:-:-:

A/n: And so Trunks gets his voice heard in more ways than one. Sorry, Trunkie-kun, for ignoring you! LOL. (Sheepish) So, poor Trunks has his own problems…. Never fear, Gohan is here! (Pumps fist)

I actually wanted Trunks to go through this whole catharsis thing, ending in tears as the warrior finally cried, but it just didn't work out. Darn you Aline! Why must you always thwart me! (Shakes fist)

Aline: (From afar) That's my _job_, authoress.

(Scowls)

LIVEJOURNAL! That's where you can find my review responses now. Sorry kids, the Lair of the Panther is going down! The load of work is too much for me…. LOL, I'm just lazy, which you knew already. :) It's a community, so if you wish to join it, feel free to do so! You have to be a user at to join, though. (Sadness) Can still post comments! The interaction will be good for you and me. This way you all can talk to each other:) Coolness. Thanks to **Night-Owl123** (And where have _you_ been, missy?), **DBZ Chick1**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **Salazarfalcon**, **Briememory**, **miroku-has-darkness**, and **Tiara Shin**! I'll post the link to my livejournal community as soon as I can. ;)

All righty! So Trunks gets in a spat because his parents are considering having another baby! It's a life-changing decision, to be sure, but one made without Trunks' say! Nevertheless, Trunks is happy, especially after he tells his parents how he feels and is accepted! Things are going great for this demi-Saiyan, but will they next chapter? Find out next time, on **Vigilante Angel**!

Sayonara,

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at AASN. Enjoy.

_Updated 08.14.05_


	42. Chapter the Forty First: Forlorn

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-first

Disclaimer: (Points at title) Whew! That is a LOT of chapters of fanfiction… Speaking of fanfiction, dissect that word. FAN-FICTION; fiction by the fans. I'm a fan; therefore I do not own Dragonball Z.

Disclaimer Two: Aww, poor Chapter the Twenty-seventh. No one ever goes to read it anymore… (Hint, hint)

A/n: Auuughhh! All these BIG WORDS! Stupid SAT prep class… it's investing in me a certain desire to use fancy words in my writing…. Not that that is a bad thing.

Aline: Really. And if you sound dorky while you're at it?

SP: Aline, I _am_ a dork.

Aline: Just checking.

SP:) Yes, I have finally managed to hunt down my lackadaisical muse! (See, there I go again! Augghh!) We are not necessarily back in business, but we sure are speedy in this update. Whoo-hoo! LOL. Alas, school begins in two weeks… Eeks, not cool. (Shudders)

**miroku-has-darkness** brought up a very interesting little complication last chapter with his or her review (which that reviewer is forgiven for by the way), and I am here to tell you that you're going to find out something about that…. (Snickers) I'm so mean! Bwahahaha! (Laughs maniacally)

Oohh… (Calms down) So, now that those are over, let's waltz down to the fic! Enjoy!

:-:-:-:

Previously on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Gohan had the feeling that he would still have to push Trunks to admit his feelings to his family, but as long as the demi-Saiyan did it, Gohan wouldn't mind. _

_Existence was awesome right about now. _

:-:-:-:

**Several Months Later: Nine Years after the Cell Games**

"And in the midst of the night, there was a creature so solemn, so calm, it appeared that it wasn't there…" Gohan intoned. He shut the scary stories book he held and quietly got up. Placing the book gently in the right place, Gohan bent over and painted a light kiss onto Goten's forehead, saying "Happy birthday, little monster." He lingered for a few more minutes, looking fondly upon his dear brother, then disappeared, silently.

The door opened seconds later to admit two black-capped heads. The faces under the black strands smiled affectionately at the sight they beheld. Slowly, they, too, retreated from the place of solace and serenity, taking pains to close the door as noiselessly as possible.

And so it was that silence descended upon the Son household on the day of Goten's ninth birthday.

:-:-:-:

"Whew, that was a busy one," Gohan huffed as he sat down abruptly on the ground in Otherworld. Osi grimaced sympathetically at him, falling gracefully (SP: Um, can you do that? Fall gracefully? I sure can't. (Grimaces)) next to him. Ron tilted his head, listening as Gohan rambled on.

"First, there was waking him up before Mom and Dad did so I could wish him a happy birthday," the demi-Saiyan sighed. "Do you know how hard it is to wake that kid up, _especially_ on his birthday? Kami, you practically need a bucket of water to get him moving!" he complained. The twinkle in his eye (though dimmed) belied his plaintive tone, and it was with grins that Osi and Ron urged their friend on.

Son Gohan, at twenty years of age, had finally stopped growing (SP: Finally! LOL!). On his bare feet (SP: Rather than stocking feet, as it usually goes), Gohan stood at six feet and five inches, which was pretty tall, surpassing his father by two inches (SP: Or three. Goku I think is six foot two). For the people who have no idea what an "inch" is, Gohan is approximately one hundred and ninety-five point six centimeters, rounded up. (Nods)

Marching on.

Gohan's hair had recovered nicely from the haircut it had received two years ago and was now as long as he'd had it when he was eleven (SP: Thank Kami for that). The forelock still hung in front of his black eyes, which still shone as wickedly as ever (striking fear into everyone who knew him! LOL). The eyes danced over a stream of firm skin, permanently broken on one side, and a proudly unbroken nose (SP: O.O It's still not broken? (Mutters)), and the ever-smiling mouth. The chin lorded over the longer neck, still in proportion with the rest of him, and the chin is the lord of everything (SP: LOL, getting a little crazy here (Sweatdrops)).

So there's the description of his face. Here comes the rest.

Gohan had again changed his outfit to suit his particular mindset and/or maturity (SP: Maturity? What maturity?). This time it consisted of the basic samurai's outfit, with the kimono top and the wide black pants that seemed almost like a dress (LOL!), and the black obi wrapped securely around the middle. Gohan claimed he was dressing this way to get in touch with his Japanese roots, but there were more than a few people who suspected that Gohan liked the look. And why shouldn't he? It did look rather dashing on him (Hehe).

Kami, this authoress really likes to dress her characters up, doesn't she? Heh! (Sweatdrops)

Anyway…. Only Osi and Ron knew the truth: Goten and Trunks had declared that it looked cool.

Gohan did have to admit that the samurai gear was nice and loose, something the not-so-young adult couldn't get enough of. Yes… and Arikeru would even come out sometimes to see what it was like, once again, to be stuck firmly into an obi (a wide sash worn by samurai and general kimono wearers). That _was_ the way that Arikeru had started out in the first place.

Gohan could not possibly appreciate those times more. Feeling Arikeru under his hand just brought him a reassurance that Hageshiijutsu just couldn't give him, even after all this time. That wasn't to say that the well-mannered naginata didn't try. ;)

Bringing it back in, we continue with our story.

"But anyway," Gohan spoke, shaking his head, "finally, I get Goten up and am in the process of giving a birthday noogie, right? Mom and Dad suddenly come creeping in, scaring the daylights out of me and making me drop Goten on the floor while I'm at it."

"Was Goten all right?" Osi gasped, her eyes wide. Gohan nodded, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, he landed on his butt," the demi-Saiyan remarked, shaking his head again. "But, darn, did they have to be so silent?" he griped, to the amusement of Osi and Ron. Well, Osi was at least a bit more sympathetic.

"Sheesh. I'm a Saiyan, I should have been able to hear them coming, or at least sensed their kis, or something!" Gohan blew out a breath and smiled ruefully. "As it is, we had to explain to them that I had been visiting for Goten's birthday."

"And they wanted to include you in on the birthday celebrations," Ron interjected, figuring out what Gohan was really so disgruntled (SP: Poor Gohan-chan…) about. Gohan nodded, his frustration evident on his face.

"I haven't had an ordinary birthday celebration like Goten's today since I was eleven. What am I supposed to do at something that I only have second-rate memories of? Needless to say—"

"I know what you're supposed to do. You're supposed to try it. You're supposed to jump in with your eyes shut and go with the flow," Osi interrupted quietly. Gohan turned to look at her, surprise in his eyes. Ron merely offered his sister a sad smile, which Gohan took as his cue not to press for further details. Instead, he smiled.

"Yeah, but saying you'll do it and actually doing it are two different things. All right, all right," Gohan called, raising his hand to forestall any protests from Osi. "I'll do my best to try, but no guarantees."

Osiran nodded, knowing that Gohan was legendary for being stubborn for a reason (SP: Wow, the kid's really famous, isn't he? (Sweatdrops)). This was the best she was going to get.

"All right, now where was I?" Gohan paused, trying to think of what he had last said. Something about… Fiddlesticks! It was gone. He shrugged "Nyaahh, must have been important. Oh! I remember."

Osi and Ron shared amused glances. This was _soo_ like Gohan.

"Yeah. Somehow I managed to get out of it and told Goten I'd see him later. He pouted a little bit, but wasn't too whiny about it. Of course, I did tell him that I'd spar with him…" Gohan smirked. Osi pursed her lips and mock-glared at him. Meanwhile Ron laughed silently; his body shook. Gohan's smirk grew wider into a grin, so much that Osi broke into giggles herself.

Gohan loved making his friends laugh. It was the only time that he saw the true people behind those orange countenances. As a result, the Saiyan tried to make his friends chortle as much as possible. For the most part, he succeeded, but occasionally, the siblings looked at him as if he'd sprouted another arm from the center of his forehead. Gohan had actually done that once, and while the siblings didn't laugh, the looks on their face was absolutely invaluable.

As Osi and Ron quieted, Gohan went on.

"During my 'time off,' I guess you could say, I went and visited Gabrielle."

:**_FLASHBACK MODE_**:

_"Hey, Gab," Gohan called, flashing into sight of his friend of two years. Gabrielle looked up and smiled briefly before turning back to her labor. On the girl's lap was a skein of bold red yearn, with a single strand leaping up high to entangle Gabrielle's fingers. _

_The fact that the nature girl's hands were moving dispelled the tangled notion, however. In Gabrielle's hand was a bright hooked needle with the one thread looped around it, and in her other hand was an emerging square of thick string. The nascent rectangle was held together by all of the interconnected stitches and patterns; a movement of art called crocheting. _

_"How's the afghan coming?" Gohan asked as he moved to sit cross-legged in front of her. Grimacing, Gabrielle just shook her head, causing Gohan to wince. _

_"That bad, huh?" _

_Finally Gabrielle opened up. With a sigh, she exclaimed, "It's just that I can't seem to get the hang of this dratted pattern. It's driving me psychical!" _

_Her statement startled Gohan into laughter. Gabrielle grinned wryly, weariness in her face. _

_"It's my sister. Whenever she goes ballistic, her psychic powers rear up neurotically in her. Since they are impossible to calm down, whenever something or someone bugs her to the point of insanity, she yells, 'This is driving me psychical!" Everyone in range knows then to either back away, his or her face turning pale…"_

_Gohan was Grinning™ by then. "Basically she's gotten you saying it, too, ne?" _

_Gabrielle nodded. Gohan snickered unsympathetically at her, making her shake her head as if to say, _"What is the world coming to?"_, albeit with a smile. _

_Silence plonked down between them then, as Gohan and Gabrielle studied each other. Gohan thought that Gabrielle looked rather comfortable with herself now, instead of merely being resigned. At any rate, she had that burgeoning self-confidence that only came from facing the unknown with one's eyes wide shut (SP: Metaphorically, that is, and one more than one level…)_

_Other things had changed. Gabrielle now sported a one-color hairdo, the light brown that the top of her head had permanently become. She also had more friends, and had also gone through the trials and tribulations of such sudden extrovert-ness. A lot more open, she smiled more, was not so caustic anymore (although she still possessed an innate sense of wit that was amusing), and was somewhat more optimistic than when she had first lost her powers. Chaos and uncertainty were still a big part of this girl's life, but slowly, she was coming to grips with it. _

_Now, as she considered Gohan, there was a fire within that burned similarly to the one before it. This fire, the previous fire, Gohan had spotted in her at first glance, and it had been raging all over the place. The new fire was more serene, a change that Gohan still debated whether he liked or not. _

_Unexpectedly, Gabrielle spoke up. Her too-large voice startled the silence sitting between them. It jumped up and fled, sensing it wasn't wanted anymore (SP: LOL). _

_"What's bothering you, Gohan-san?" she asked, a smile pulling forcefully on her lips (SP: Stop that, smile! That's not very nice!). Gohan blinked, surprised. _

_"What do you mean?" he inquired. _

_"You're not jumping about as you usually are, you're not so chipper, and you're actually acting your age," she ticked off on her now free fingers. She paused and looked up at a mock-affronted Gohan. "Well, they all mean the same thing, really, which is that you're not being immature." (SP: Immature? What do you mean?) _

_At this, Gohan's jaw dropped. The person himself gasped indignantly and turned away, crossing his arms. "Why, I never—" was the only saying that walked out of his mouth before Gabrielle interrupted dryly._

_"That's what I mean. You're not doing that. Now come on, tell!" she commanded despotically. _

_"Hmph," Gohan sniffed, still turned away. The grin sneaked onto his face a second later, but he refused to turn around until he heard Gabrielle's tired sigh. _

_"All right, fine," he said then, his tone half-petulant. He swung back then, his smile expectant. Indeed, the mouth stretched further upon seeing the patient expression O'Hara-san's face was garbed with. _

_"Gohan…" she said, warningly. _

_"Okay, okay!" the perpetrator laughed. "Huh…." The look on Gohan's visage changed from mischievously interested to a forlorn smile, although it was affectionate at the same time (SP: If that's even possible. O.o). Gabrielle felt that it much suited Gohan's mood now, more than the cheer he put up. That didn't mean that it looked right on his face, though. _

_"I watch Goten, Mom, and Dad every day. Every time, it strikes me how much of a family they look now. Before, it was just Mom and Goten. But now with Dad there, the picture is complete. There's nothing missing anymore. There's…" _

_The Saiyan sighed. "What I'm trying to say is that there's no room for me any longer. Dad has taken my place… and they've moved on without me." Misinterpreting the sad look on Gabrielle's face, Gohan quickly added, "Oh, I know that that's what they're supposed to do, but still." He laughed sadly. "But still, it hurts." _

_He glanced again at the sorrowful Gabrielle. She merely gazed at him for another minute, then smiled, sadly. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Gohan-san," she said. The demi-Saiyan returned her smile appreciatively, taking her sympathy as comfort. There was nothing either she or he could do about this, and the both of them knew it (SP: (Sniffs)). _

_Gohan looked his friend straight in the eye and asked, "What's with the –san thing?"_

:**_END FLASHBACK MODE_**:

"Wow," Osi's voice floated to him through the haze of memory. Gohan looked up and grinned at the starry glint in the Takao-jin's eyes. "That was really touching," she finished.

"If you say so," Gohan responded boyishly. Osi glared at him and was clearly preparing to make some cutting remark in turn.

"On the other hand, it gave me a lot to think about," the demi-Saiyan smoothly proceeded. "Certainly enough to make this conversation worth it."

Flattery can really work wonders in terms of mollification. :)

"After I left Gabrielle, I went back to Goten's house. I watched from afar as my little brother opened presents, ate cake, and enjoyed being with his parents. The sight only enforced the feeling that I had told Gabrielle about, the feeling of not being needed so much anymore, of being left out of the family I used to be such a vital part of."

There was silence in the moderately long moment (SP: Moderately long? Just how long is that?) after Gohan's statement. Ron's voice, though nearly silent, shattered it.

"You do know, Gohan, that you are a part of _our_ family up here? And not just with us, but with everyone else up here in Upper Heaven. When you're gone for anything over two hours, we all look around for you, wondering where you've gone. We all know that you've got your brother to look after, but it's still like a light has gone out of this place when you're not here," the Takao-jin related, his eyes directed up to the yellow clouds, not to Gohan. The demi-Saiyan smiled, mirthlessly, and did not say anything.

The quiet stretched on until Gohan gave a heavy sigh.

"Well, then. After the squirtling had his final celebrations, I contacted him using our mind link and told him to come outside. He did so with alacrity," he gave a short chuckle, "and bounced up to my spot in the trees. Even after all of the things that he had accomplished over the course of this birthday, he still had so much energy (SP: This is _Goten_ we're talking about. _Goten_.) I couldn't help but smile, and the world seemed brighter."

Indeed, the demi-Saiyan was smiling reminiscently. It wasn't enough to dispel the thoughtful atmosphere that had descended upon them, however. Osi and Ron did smile themselves, though.

:**_FLASHBACK MODE TWO_**: (Another long flashback thingy…)

_"Hey, little monster. Did you have a good birthday?" Gohan greeted Goten. _

_"Yeah!" the demi-Saiyan whooped, obviously still hyper. Gohan sweatdropped as Goten bounced frenetically on the branch they sat on, shaking the whole tree in the process. Gohan stilled his brother with a firm push on the head, and the birds that had started squawking indignantly quieted down. _

_(SP: (Sweatdrops))_

_"What'd you get?" the elder said to the younger. Goten instantly rattled off a whole list of presents that had Gohan fervently glad it wasn't of all those given by his parents. The cost of all those presents… Whew! (SP: Hehe! (Laughs nervously) And an awkward sentence to boot! (Sweatdrops) I'm so weird…) _

_"Wow, that's a lot of stuff," remarked Gohan. "Speaking of presents, here's yours from me." _

_He produced a small wide rubber band and handed it to Goten. His brother's eyes grew wide as he whispered excitedly," This is an activate-deactivate ki damper in the form of a rubber bracelet! It's been spelled with ki magic to grow with me over the years and will never, ever fall off! Oh, Gohan-nii, this is awesome!" Goten launched himself a the grinning Gohan and gave him the tightest hug he could muster (SP: And as a result, we hear choking sounds! LOL!). _

_Letting go, Goten inspected the bracelet, his developing scholar's mind clicking rapidly with the large flow of information it gained from the innocent rubber band bracelet he held in his hands. _

_Gohan smirked. It had started last year, this reasoning things out by actually using his brain and knowledge. Goten was getting to be like how Gohan had already been at four or five years of age. That was not to say that Goten was getting to be a know-it-all or even bookish, but some would see this development was a welcome relief. Vegeta was a known supporter (SP: LOL! Poor Veg-chan, having to deal with two Kakkarots in different sizes…). _

_"Why don't you try it on?" Gohan suggested, a knowing glint in his dark eyes. A brief glance was all that Goten spared him before the youngest Son eagerly slipped it on. A flash of light flared from the bracelet but faded quickly, leaving a sight to behold. _

_Before Goten's wondering eyes was now a sky-blue wristband engraved with the words "From one insane brother to another. The Demon Trio forever," in Saiyago. The bracelet fit snugly over Goten's wrist; just enough for ample wrist movement and circulation, but it wouldn't forever be slipping down and getting in the way (SP: Like mine. (Makes face)). It was a great present, and the stars in Goten's eyes told Gohan so. _

_A smirk gracing his features, Gohan stood up on the branch. "All right, Goten, you've had enough time to study that thing. I promise you a spar, and a spar I'm going to give you." _

_"All right! I'm so going to kick your butt!" Goten yelled, jumping off of the branch in his own turn. Gohan grabbed him and tickled him mercilessly, grating out between his teeth, _

_  
"And I'm going to wipe the floor with you for saying that, you little monster. Apologize now!" _

_"No way!" Goten laughed breathlessly. He wiggled out of Gohan's grasp and sped away, chase by a mock-irate Gohan. _

_Once the two brothers got out into the open, they clashed. In an epic battle of ki and fists, Gohan and Goten swung at, grappled, kicked, bit, and threw each other everywhere. They punched, chased, feinted, dodged, smashed, crashed, leaped, got up, and generally performed all kinds of maneuvers involved in a "spar." When Gohan had Goten pinned down for the last time, both were in super Saiyan ode, although Goten had come very close to Super Saiyan Two. Gohan noted to himself to teach both Goten and Trunks how to do that. It was better to have them do this supervised than by themselves, and also with someone who knew what the challenges of SS2 were. _

_Gohan, as we all know, was so overqualified for that last one it wasn't even funny. So not funny. _

_"Gotcha, boyo," Gohan panted, the gold forelock in his jade eyes. Goten struggled but it was no use: He was chained down. With a grunt, Goten finally acknowledged the inevitable: _

_"All right, Gohan, you win," the growing demi-Saiyan huffed, powering down. Gohan was skeptical however. He knew his brother. So it was only when Goten added, "I won't do anything!" that Gohan powered down and let him up. True enough, Goten tried to nab him, but the older Saiyan dodged him cheerfully. Goten growled in frustration, but trailed along after Gohan as the latter bounded away, flaunting his vast energy reserves in the exhausted Goten's face. _

_"Aw, man," the nine-year-old complained, plodding on. "How come he gets to do that even after that spar?" _

_"Because, baby bro," Gohan's voice sounded beside him, "I've been at this for way longer than you have." The warrior himself appeared seconds later, a grin on his face as he saw Goten's pout. _

_"That doesn't mean it's fair!" the younger brother cried. _

_"No, it doesn't. Don't sweat it, soon you'll have enough energy left over after a Super Saiyan spar to bounce all over the place too." _

_"Really?" _

_Gohan ruffled the demi's hair, effectively evading the halfhearted attempts to swat him away. "Yeah, really. You're so close t' Super Saiyan Two…" _

_"Wow! Really? That's awesome! Will you teach me how to go there?" Goten pleaded, his usual sparkle returning to his eyes. Gohan smiled. _

_"I was just thinking that I needed to do that," he responded. Goten let out a whoop that resonated throughout the forest and Gohan's heart. _

_Nevertheless, Gohan raised an eyebrow. "Say… weren't you supposed to be exhausted?" he said, eyeing Goten. _

_Immediately Gohan's brother drooped again. "Oh, yeah," the demi-human mumbled. Gohan raised his eyes to the heavens and shook his head amusedly. Oh, yeah, indeed. LOL. _

_The brothers sallied forth out of the forest and headed towards the Son home. Halfway there, Gohan stopped. Goten took a few more steps and paused. He turned around and looked at Gohan, whom smiled at him. _

_"Go on inside, bro. I'll see you tomorrow," Gohan said. Goten didn't move, well, actually he did, but not in the direction that Gohan told him to go. Instead, he made tracks directly back to the dead demi. _

_"What's wrong, lil bro?" Gohan asked, looking down at Goten. Goten didn't respond. Instead he just stared up at Gohan. _

_"Goten?" _

_"Gohan, why won't you walk with me into the house? You never come in anymore," Goten said, his tone quiet. "I know you're my guardian angel, but that doesn't mean that you can't be inside with me." _

_"Oh, Goten," Gohan sighed. Kneeling, the demi ran a hand through his hair (SP: And quite long hair it was LOL). "Goten, our mom doesn't know that I'm your guardian angel, or that I visit you every day. I'm supposed to be dead, and dead people don't visit the living all the time." _

_"But you do. You come and see me all the time," Goten rebutted, his lip setting out in a pout. Gohan sighed again (SP: Sheesh, what is with all these emotional chapters I've been writing? Can't I write a straightforward action fic anymore?). _

_"Bro, it's complicated. Yes, I do stop by with you every day, and I'm going to keep doing that. It's just not customary for dead people to do that. Sorry, squirt, but…" He shook his head. _

_Goten absolutely looked liked he was about to cry (SP: Poor Ten-kun. The things I do to my characters…) any moment. Gohan felt distress enter his heart upon seeing the tears quivering in his brother's eyes, but there was nothing he could do. This was not so simple as kissing a scratch to make it all better, or simply doing something Goten liked to distract him. This was serious, and part of growing up. _

_(SP: Btw, I wrote this part starting with "Goten said, his tone quiet," in bright yellow highlighter. Ow, my eyes…) _

_"Is there ever going to be a time when you walk through that door with me?" Goten's voice was thick with tears by now, his throat closing up painfully as he cried. Gohan reached up to hug him, but Goten pulled away and continued to stare at him, his big brother, waiting for an answer. _

_Truly distressed now, Gohan only responded, "Yeah. But it's not now; later." _

_"When's later?" Goten cried, giving up the subdued child atmosphere. "When is later? Tell me, I wanna know!" he threw his arms around Gohan and sobbed, the quiet sounds not quite filling the air. Gohan only sighed for the third or fourth time (Aline: The authoress has already lost track, I'm sad to say. It's the third time, fyi.), and gathered up the trembling bundle in his arms. Looking towards the windows, he saw and sensed no one watching them, so he IT'd directly into Goten's room. _

_He strode over to Goten's bed and made as if to deposit him onto it. Goten wouldn't let go, so Gohan ended up sitting on the bed with the pacific Goten on his lap and rocking back and forth gently. _

_"What a way to end your ninth birthday, huh, Goten?" Gohan murmured to his sibling. Goten didn't answer; he just burrowed his face into Gohan's kimono and rested it there. He discovered that Gohan had a very strong heartbeat, even though he was supposed to be dead (SP: HEY! Don't yell at me about this! I actually have a theory that explains this, don't worry!). The beat helped to calm Goten down a little, enough that he would let Gohan tuck him in. He still wouldn't Gohan go, so Gohan sat in the chair beside the bed. Hit by an idea (SP: Ouch. (Winces sympathetically)), Gohan pulled out the nearest book and opened it, knowing that reading would always get Goten to sleep. As it was, the newly-turned-nine-years-old was half-asleep already._

_"It was a June night, windy and cold. Nothing stirred, nothing breathed. Nothing, except for the creature that prowled through the night…"_

:**_END FLASHBHACK MODE TWO_**:

"Poor Goten-kun. Are you really planning on telling your mom one day that you're Goten's angel?" Osi asked. Both she and Ron looked expectantly at Gohan, as if waiting for him to say "yes."

"Actually, I have a different thing in mind…" Gohan told his friends what he was planning. He got looks askance for his plan, but both of the Osi siblings knew better than to argue. Gohan was Gohan, and he always would be. Nothing would change his mind once he had it and his heart set on something. Although it did seem as though his heart wasn't entirely so willing to go along this time…

(SP: Darn highlighter pen! I couldn't see what I'd written after I wrote it, so it took me a lot longer than it'd normally take for me to type it up. A thousand apologies for making such a stupid mistake. (Hits self on forehead) Ooh…)

:-:-:-:

A/n: Eek, that highlighter mistake really did something to my eyes. The only way I could see my writing was through my fluorescent light. Thank you whoever put that light in my house! It saved me a lot of work…. (Wipes hand across forehead) Whew! That was really close!

Wow. This is a long one. I hadn't expected that this chapter would be so long… Nor that it would have two flashbacks in one chapter. Eeks! Creativity overload here! LOL.

So, Goten wants Gohan to come into the house with him now, huh? But Gohan says later… how is he going to accomplish this? And how much later is it going to be (**Miroku**! No telling!)? What's up with Gabrielle? What's up with Osi, too? Why was she so sad when she told Gohan to just try things, even when you have no idea what's going on? And why does Gohan feel so left out, when Goten clearly prefers his company to the family's company? Find out next time, on **Vigilante Angel**!

Many thanks, my lord and lady reviewers! **Briememory**, **miroku-has-darkness**, **dd**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Sos**, **SSJMajinVegetaSaiyanPrince**, **Salazarfalcon**, and **MarshmellowDragon**!

Speaking of reviews, the link to the livejournal community I told you about last chapter is in my bio. The community is called "The World of TheShadowPanther's Reviewers," so if you don't find yourself in that place, tell me so I can fix the link. Thanks! (Winks) See ya when ya get there!

Sayonara!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 08.23.05_

(PS—Anybody know how the review petition is going?)


	43. Chapter the Forty Second: Education

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-second

Disclaimer: I am NOT Akira Toriyama, nor am I employed at FUNimation or Shonen Jump!. Do not presume to think that if you sue me, you will get anything more than this old bag of chips that's sitting beside me. (I really gotta throw that away…)

Disclaimer Two: I will not repeat myself! Just go to Chapter the Twenty-seventh already! Sheesh! (LOL!)

A/n: Wow, three hundred and fifty reviews! I'm so touched! (Squeals)

Aline: Don't even think about it, Panther.

Think about what?

Aline: (Looks™)

…Fine. (Pouts) Now, about this chapter, I have to say "Thank you" to Natsuki Takaya, the authoress/drawer of Fruits Basket. I learned a lot of things about Japanese culture that are present in here simply by going back to my manga and looking closer at everything! Arigatou Takaya-sensei! (Bows to the shrine the Panther has set up)

:-:-:-:

The Last Time That Chapter Button Was Clicked, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_"Actually, I have a different thing in mind…" Gohan told his friends what he was planning. He got looks askance for his plan, but both of the Osi siblings knew better than to argue. Gohan was Gohan, and he always would be. Nothing would change his mind once he had it and his heart set on something. Although it did seem as though his heart wasn't entirely so willing to go along this time… _

_(SP: Darn highlighter pen! I couldn't see what I'd written after I wrote it, so it took me a lot longer than it'd normally take for me to type it up. A thousand apologies for making such a stupid mistake. (Hits self on forehead) Ooh…) _

:-:-:-:

**A Year and Two Months Later: Ten Years after the Cell Games**

"But why do I have to?" whined a certain demi-Saiyan. Another demi-Saiyan echoed the statement, although this demi wasn't so emphatic about it. Trunks _had_ been going to school for a year longer, after all. (SP: (Gasps) School! Ohh… (Faints))

"Don't ask _me_ that, ask Mom! _She's_ the one making you do this!" Gohan shot back, exasperated. This was the fifth time they'd had this argument, and they were nearing the dreaded place of educational doom. Trunks pulled away and headed up the steps of the middle school, leaving a lagging Goten to resist the pull of the school.

"I don't want to!" Goten pouted. "I want to stay here with you! I'd have more fun!"

"Thanks, bro," Gohan replied dryly. "Now, go on!"

"No!" Goten dug his heels into the floor, and you know what this means…!

If you said that there are now two heel-shaped dents in the sidewalk, you'd be right. Cookie for you! (LOL, that's a lot of cookies to give out…)

Gohan sighed. "All right, Goten, I'll make you a bargain. If I go into the school with you and drop you off at your class, will you come with me? I'll come and pick you up, too."

Goten looked up at Gohan. The issue of going through the same door that Goten and Gohan had debated a year ago was still very much alive this day. On Goten's tenth birthday two months ago, Goten had again asked Gohan when he was going to come into the house. Gohan's answer had again been "Later, bro, and that's the end of it."

So now, Goten's eyes were bright as he asked, "You'll do that?"

"Yep," Gohan asked. He knew that he was just adding fuel to Goten's already fiery hope, but he didn't think that Goten would go into the school any other way out of his own will.

"Sure. As long as we don't hold hands," Goten remarked mulishly. Gohan chuckled and tucked his hands into his pockets. "Of course not, bro. You're a kid now, and kids don't hold hands."

"That's right," Goten answered, still rebellious. Gohan only smirked and headed lightly up the steps, landing on each stair on his toes. Goten followed, smacking his heel mutinously on each riser so as to offset Gohan's airy mood with his own more grounded one.

"Oh, cheer up, otouto-kun. It's not so bad. You could be helping Mom wash the laundry," Gohan tried, attempting to cajole Goten into a better mood. Goten wouldn't have any of it, however, and stayed stubbornly seditious.

"I'd rather be doing that than this," he muttered. Gohan sighed and gave up. He knew that Goten wouldn't want to leave at the end of the school day; it was just up to Goten to see that.

"All right, bro, if you say so," he said instead (SP: Rhyme! (Giggles)).

He put his hand on top of Goten's hair but didn't ruffle it. Their mother had gone through so much effort to comb it and get it to lie straight, and Gohan didn't want an angry Mom to deal with, not with the rebellious Goten on his hands already. Likely, Goten's hair wouldn't be flat at the end of the day, anyway, but image was important for first impressions.

"I do say so," Goten insisted, dragging his feet. Gohan matched his slow pace with his own, thankful that they had arrived so early. Homeroom wasn't until another ten minutes, giving them plenty of time to get the reluctant Goten to the room.

As the Demon Trio had feared, the younger members were being sent to school. Trunks had started last year and had smugly declared that he knew so much more than the kids starting there that it was pathetic. Gohan had agreed upon seeing the homework that Trunks had so speedily completed one day. It was this that was the basis for Goten's dread, for the ten-year-old Saiyan, though he wouldn't admit it, loved to learn new things. Being stuck with other ten-year-olds that didn't know jack about anything academic was not what Goten's idea of fun was.

Gohan couldn't blame him.

However, it was not for the academic experience that Son Chichi and Briefs Bulma were sending their children to school. It was for the "social enrichment" that their peers would bring to them that had the two woman so adamant about sending them. Vegeta had snorted and told Bulma that his "gaki didn't need social enrichment, not on this mud ball of a planet."

The opinion had earned him the couch for a whole month, as well as the handy reminder that he was "no longer the power-hungry Saiyan Prince under the orders of Frieza" and that if Vegeta wanted "Trunks to get a suitable mate, then he'd better learn the proper social skills."

Needless to say, Vegeta had subsided. It didn't mean that he was beaten, however.

Goku had merely scratched his head at the announcement and said, "Yes, Chichi." (Hehe!) This action had the consequences of his son refusing to speak to him for the whole two months since the news, including this day. (SP: LOL.)

Eighteen, now Chichi and Bulma's other best friend, was considering sending Marron, about to turn six, to primary school. It was for both the academic and social benefits in this case, since Marron had not been home-schooled like Goten and Trunks had been. However, Marron already had a legs-up on the boys in terms of social enrichment, since Eighteen and Krillin had seen fit to move to the city and out of the isolation that Master Roshi's island so forced onto them.

But all of this was neither here nor there. Goten and Gohan had now finally reached room 2C, where Goten's homeroom was, and stopped outside of it. Gohan motioned for Goten to open the door, but Goten was suspicious of Gohan and told him to do it. With an exaggerated sigh, Gohan reached for the handle and slid open the door.

:-:-:-:

Kinata Mitako (SP: That's in Japanese format, btw, like Son Gohan) was getting a bit worried. It was eight minutes to homeroom and the new transfer student still wasn't here yet. She supposed that the student, Son Goten, would get here in his own sweet time, but she would have preferred him arriving at least ten minutes before homeroom so that she could get to know the new student.

A rattle directed Mitako's attention towards the door. She stood up as the door opened, revealing two figures. One was a tall man around twenty, holding the door handle. The other was an unhappy-looking ten-year-old boy, looking for all the world like his mother had left him and he didn't understand why.

Considering the indomitable woman she had met, Son Chichi, Mitako rather thought that was the case (SP: hehe!).

The man, of obvious relation to the boy, nudged her new student, causing him to step inside. Mitako watched as the unfamiliar student shot a dirty look over his shoulder at the man, and wondered at the ferocity in it. His relation (somehow Mitako didn't think that the man was his father, as Goten's mother had been nearly forty (SP: or something like that)) merely chuckled at him as he stepped in after him.

"Hi. Are you Son Goten?" Mitako asked, moving forward to greet the newcomers.

"Yeah," the transfer student said, his mouth twitching rebelliously. Ooh. He was here unwillingly then. The man beside him chuckled again.

"You'll have to excuse my brother." Aha! So he was Goten's brother! She knew that he couldn't be Goten's father… "He's not exactly happy to be here," Goten's brother said.

"I can see that," Mitako said, looking back at Goten. The boy dressed in a green-and-blue shirt and blue pants glowered back at her. She was slightly intimidated by the look, and as such was relieved when Goten's brother told him to behave.

"I'm Son Gohan. You are?"

"Kinata Mitako, or Kinata-san," Mitako replied. Turning to Goten, she said, "I'll be your homeroom and literature teacher. I'm pleased to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Kinata-san," Son-san (Goten) said politely, if still with the undercurrent of unrest in his tone. Gohan-san nodded to her when she turned to him, with that wicked smirk still on his face. Mitako felt a blush rise up on her cheeks and swung quickly around (SP: Just in time not to notice the halo, heh!), heading back over to her desk for her papers.

"Very well, Son-san. If you'll look over these papers and sign them? They formalize your attendance here…" (SP: This is not part of the Japanese thing. This is my own invention.)

Goten nodded and followed the tracks of his teacher over to the desk. As Mitako had nothing else to do, she couldn't keep herself from looking at Gohan out of the corner of her eye (SP: Mitako, I'm warning you. STAY AWAY FROM GOHAN! HE'S OURS!).

Son Gohan was dressed in a gray sleeveless buttoned shirt with a high collar and long black trousers. He wore a necklace with a curious pendant, what looked like a sideways figure eight with a line in its middle and swirls attached to the top of either loop.

Two scars formed a thin, crooked "V" on Gohan-san's left cheek, with one looking more recent than the other. The scar that ran from the edge of Gohan-san's eye to his mouth was the older mark, so the scar that cut from the bottom of the first scar to the cheek area between the cheekbone and the jawbone was the fresher one. It was deeper, as well, becoming a real scar rather than just a shallow scratch, as the other one was.

"Here you go," a soprano voice said. Mitako turned her attention back to Goten, whom was holding out the papers and the pen for her to take. She did so with a smile (SP: Hmph. (Sniffs haughtily)) and told him to take the fifth seat in the fourth row, the only seat that was empty according to her seating chart. Goten, eyeing her suspiciously, nevertheless complied, sliding off his backpack in the process. He grumpily waved goodbye to Gohan, who heaved off of the wall he'd been leaning on, smiling.

"Bye, bro. Have a good time, and I mean it," he said. Mitako ducked her head to hide her laughter, though Gohan himself made no such action. His low laughter was still echoing in the room when the homeroom bell rang and kids Goten's age poured in. Mitako was left wondering how she was going to get through the day with Gohan on her mind and teaching to do, even as life itself moved on.

And death did, too. (SP: Well, duh! Gohan's got some stuff to do too, ya know…)

:-:-:-:

Gohan spent his day trying to find something that would occupy his days now that Goten had school. He had relatively little success, for he was already used to practicing with Hageshiijutsu, his ki-magic, and getting his homework done (SP: Yep, King Yemma's still at it! Sheesh, will he ever _not _be afraid of Chichi?). He hadn't really done anything in the way of getting his training done, as in regular martial arts without a weapon, unless you counted training Goten and Trunks in Super Saiyan Two.

(SP: And there we have it! We've got Trunks and Goten at Super Saiyan Two… anybody think that we're due for a new villain yet? (Winks))

Adding that to his mental list, Gohan considered the whole thing with a sigh. Like we said, he'd already practiced with Hageshiijutsu and his ki magic, he'd done his homework, and he'd talked with Osi and Ron for today. That was all that he had on his list, and as Gohan didn't feel like training today (SP: That…is the biggest shock in the world to me. Gohan? Not train? Eee…), he was stuck. He'd already visited Goten, and would do so again at the end of the day, but until then…

He had nothing to do.

To a busy guy like Gohan, who was _used_ to be being busy, this was about the most distressing thing in the whole wide universe. His fingers itched to do something, but Gohan's mind couldn't come up with something for them to do. So he decided for the time being to make up a list of the things that he _could_ do, but not all the time.

First was visit Gabrielle. He'd already seen her yesterday, so he couldn't do that. Bardock was the next on his list, but as his grandfather was in the middle of an intra-HFIL tournament, there went that option. He didn't feel like calling upon the Z-senshi, either (SP: Now _that_, we understand. Heh!), or the Kaios. The prospect of facing the rivalry between the North Kaio and the West Kaio ("Northie" and "Westie"), and the criticisms of the East Kaio, the placid nature of the South Kaio, and the dry humor of the Grand Kaio, oohh! No wonder Gohan was shuddering. Heh! (Sweatdrops) He could also prank somebody, but frankly, the appeal of that hobby had long since diminished. (SP: O.O Gohan, are you okay?)

Well, he could meditate. He hadn't done that in a long time. Gohan added that option to his first mental list, the daily events (SP: Does Gohan ever lose track of the things that he does every day? Hmm…). Shifting to a better position, Gohan crossed his legs and sat up straight, placing his wrists on his knees and touching his index finger and thumbs together. Closing his eyes, he sank into the stupor associated with meditation, making sure to stick a marker in his mind to tell him when to go down to get Goten.

In this stupor, Gohan suddenly hit upon an idea (SP: An idea, an idea! (Jumps up and down) YAY!). He let the idea roam where it would, develop at its own pace, but by the time Arikeru told him that there was an alarm going off in his mind, the idea was a full-fledged adult and willing to please (SP: Haha!). Now if only Goten and Trunks needed it…

'All right, thanks, Arikeru. I'll get out of here right away,' Gohan told the sword spirit. He soared quickly out of the trance, taking the adult idea with him. Setting the idea down in his consciousness, Gohan brought himself down to Earth (SP: Or rather Otherworld…) and bounded away lightly, disappearing for the millionth time from Otherworld.

No one gave the normally unusual phenomenon a second thought. (And why they should... when it's been happening every day in Otherworld for ten years? HEY! There's an idea! (\Ponders/))

:-:-:-:

"So how was your day, squirtlaenga?" Gohan inquired of the bouncy demi-Saiyan grinning beside him. The brother in question looked up at Gohan at the odd extension of the nickname, but as he thought of the answer to the question, his face lit up again.

"It was so fun! I met so many people there that I never knew could exist! Well, I knew that they could exist," Goten amended as Gohan bubbled with laughter. "I just never _knew_ they did—oh you know what I mean!" he declared crossly, folding his arms as Gohan guffawed.

Calming down, Gohan nodded. "Hai, I do. So, any new friends?"

"Yes!" The bouncy Goten was back in a flash, reminding Gohan of when he was younger, instead of the more rational youth he'd become. "I've got two! They're both girls, though," Goten muttered, sobering. Gohan laughed again at the disgruntled face his brother made, but did end up making the comment,

"Having girls for friends is not so bad, little brother. As long as you can out-debate them and frustrate them, then they're a lot of fun to be with."

"Really?" Goten asked, his eyes shining. Gohan chuckled. "Yep. They do tend to hit you a lot, though," he frowned, thinking of Gabrielle.

"Oh," Goten said. "But that would just hurt them, wouldn't it? Because we're so tough?"

"That's right," Gohan told with a nod of his head, pleased with his brother's rationing. "As such, when they do hit you, you're going to have to lean away from them but still act as though you felt the hit. This will make it as painless as possible for them and still keep the situation going. 'Kay?"

Goten responded with a nod. "And that way, I won't give away the fact that I'm supernaturally strong, right?"

"You may do that anyway, bro," Gohan replied, shrugging. "That kind of thing just happens. Now, if you _do_ do that," he asserted to Goten's stricken face, "just say it's some mutation of your genes that made you that way, _and_ that our father was a student of Master Roshi, and that's how you know ki and all that, 'kay? It's true enough."

A smirk spread across Goten's face. "And if my friends look at me strangely and edge away?" he asked, a touch of worry creeping in through the smirk.

Gohan simply grinned. "That won't happen, squirt, or I'll know why."

The brothers smiled at each other.

"All right, how about the classes? How are they?"

"Ugh," Goten groaned, hefting his schoolbag over his shoulder. "They were so easy I was bored to tears."

Gohan grimaced. "Eek," he agreed. "Well, do what you can to keep yourself entertained without bothering other people, kay? And if you're _really_ bored, then I have an idea that'll keep you motivated. We can't do it during class, though, that's the downside. I'm also not sure if it's exactly _legal_…"

"What is it?" Goten squealed, his interest piqued. Gohan grinned and shook his head.

"Maybe I better save it for later, when you and Trunks are done with your homework. You won't be able to do it for all the planning that you'll do once you hear what I've got for you," the dead Saiyan suggested.

Goten pleaded and begged, but Gohan would have none of it. So Goten rummaged around in his bag and brought out paper and a book and started scribbling away at it as he walked. Gohan shook his head; clearly Goten was trying to get all of his homework done before he got home. (SP: Good for you, Goten! That's the way to do it!)

"All right, little brother, none of that," Gohan stated, retrieving the paper and book. On second thought, he grabbed the book as well, so that Goten wouldn't just start on another subject. "That's cheating, you know," he said conversationally to the little fox known as his brother.

"But, Gohan…" Goten entreated, his eyes large. "I want to hear it!"

Gohan halted, consternation crossing his features. "Why are you so insistent about hearing it anyway, lil bro? It's not that big a deal…"

"Yes it is!" Goten cried, fed up. "If it can help me get out of this place, then I'll do anything I can to get it! I—I"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. I thought that you just made some really cool friends, Goten. Don't you want to spend some more time with them?" Gohan asked, a bubbling whirl of emotions roiling in him.

"Yeah, but they're not you! And Trunks has friends of his own, he's too busy to be with me," Goten said bitterly. Gohan frowned.

"Bro, did you actually _go_ up to him and ask him if he was too busy to be with you?"

"No, but it was obvious that he was," Goten screamed, working up to a frenzy. Gohan slapped his hand over Goten's mouth and glowered at him.

"Goten, if I ever catch you acting like this again, you won't be able to move for a few days, you'll be so depressed. Look at you, acting like a child! You're ten years old, for honesty's sake! Start acting like it!"

He took his hand away and stalked away down the road. He listened for lighter footsteps following after and smirked to himself. He knew his brother too well.

They proceeded in silence all the way back home. Gohan let Goten think things over, his idea still bouncing around in his head despite the frustration that Goten had expressed over not knowing it. Really, he _had_ to stop teasing his brother so. He could remember what it was like when he was Goten's age.

He couldn't really take a joke if it punched him in the nose. Goten was, well, he was not really the same way, but still, jokes _did_ go over his head a smite. He would have to be more careful about teasing Goten for a while, just until the demi-Saiyan lightened up.

Seeing as Goten was still a pre-teen, this could take years.

Gohan shrugged. Fine with him. Trunks would be the same way, probably worse. Gohan rather thought that the demi-Saiyan would develop a rather caustic wit that would scare everybody but the friendliest people off, as well as his friends from before the "sarcastic period" who knew him well enough not to pay him any mind.

And as for Goten…. He would have to see.

"Are you mad at me, nii-kun?" a small voice asked. It was not small as in young, but small in intensity and conviction. Gohan looked down at Goten, an eyebrow raised and an ambiguous expression on his face. This seemed to pain Goten, but he continued on, bolstering his courage to take the ultimate risk.

Well, the ultimate risk at the moment. (SP: There'll be others…)

"Are you?" he asked again, hoping for one answer but expecting another. Gohan looked away and paced on, giving no answer. He did ask a question, though.

"What do you think?"

Goten gulped. "I think," he started, hesitantly, "that I have some apologies to make." He bowed his head, just missing the twitch of Gohan's face. "I—I'm sorry for my atrocious behavior, nii-kun. I'm sorry…"

"All right, that's enough torture," Gohan interrupted, handing back the schoolbag to Goten. "You're almost home, though, so then you can start your _home_work, which is supposed to be done at _home_," he commanded, looking at his brother sternly. Goten swallowed again and nodded, obviously not quite understanding what was going on. Gohan grinned and ruffled his brother's hair, then took off.

He called over his shoulder, "Talk to Trunks about that busy thing, all right? He might actually be looking around for you and wondering where you are. And work on that homework! I'll tell you my idea when both of you are done!"

Goten stared, disbelieving, after Gohan's disappearing figure, then whooped and raced into the house. He almost didn't wait to open the door before he rushed through the door, nearly destroying it as he tore it open. Yells ensued, consisting mainly of Chichi's indignant squawks. Gohan grinned as he phased out in midair, flashing through dimensions and dimensional barriers to coalesce in Otherworld.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Gohan, you're so mean…. (Pouts) Sheesh, the urge to torture his little brother hasn't quite died out yet…. (Shakes head) Sheesh, I'm still writing fluff….

Well, everyone, I got a flame! It really got to me when I first read it, and even now I boil, but… I do have to say it's rather creative in its way of saying I suck! (Cheerful) Now come, everyone, laugh with me at how crude it is! (Laughs maniacally as takes flamer's penname and burns it in effigy)

Whew... (Mops forehead) That's out. Time to continue on! ;)

So what's this idea that Gohan has? Why did that teacher of Goten's develop that crush on Gohan? Is she going to be any trouble in the future? What's this frustration that Goten has over that blasted idea that Gohan has? And is Gohan ever going to find something that will occupy him as thoroughly as being Goten's guardian angel used to? Why are there so many questions? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **unknownapprentice** (if you're so annoyed, then why are you still reading?), **Tellemicus Sundance**, **Trust no-one but the moles **(well, not really, but I'm just being polite, unlike you), **Tiara Shin**, **writer321**, **DBZ Chick1**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **miroku-has-darkness** (Temper, temper!), and **Salazarfalcon** for reviewing!

Also, as of tomorrow, September 7th, I'm officially in school. Cry for slower updates. :(

Be sure to visit my livejournal community for the answers to your reviews! The link's in my bio, but not at my homepage. I'm considering deleting that; I just have to get around to it. Heh! (Sweatdrops)

Sayonara!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 09.06.05_


	44. Chapter the Forty Third: Romp

**Vigilante Angel**:Chapter the Forty-third

Disclaimer: Hmm… I'm holding a DBZ manga in my hands right now, but I can't quite seem to make out the author's name. It appears to me to be… Well, hmm, it's really quite interesting. Oh? You are interested as well? Well, it's only "Toriyama Akira…." Does it seem to you that that is my name as well? "TheShadowPanther?" No? Well, then, I must not own Dragonball Z.

Disclaimer Two: Some Chapter the Twenty-seventh for me, please! (Holds dish out to reader)

A/n: I have a very valid excuse for not updating in eighteen days. I, however, will not bore you with it, because it's the same one that plagues most aspiring authors and authoresses here about this time of the year. So, I'm going to keep me mouth shut and type this thing as quickly as I can. So then, you, the reader, can read, and then yell at me to your heart's content for not updating in so long. Constructive criticism on the text would also be appreciated. Thank you. (Turns, gets busy typing)

Aline: …Don't look at me. I'm not the one at fault for this. (Snort from authoress) SP, you _know_ that to be true.

SP: Whatever. (Still turned away)

Aline: No, not whatever. Turn around and—

SP: **_COSMO LASER BEAM CANNON!_**

Aline: NO! (Turns and flees before spiraling current of pink energy)

SP: (Goes pointedly back to computer)

:-:-:-:

Last time on **Vigilante Angel**, a long time ago—

_Goten stared, disbelieving, after Gohan's disappearing figure, then whooped and raced into the house. He almost didn't wait to open the door before he rushed through the door, nearly destroying it as he tore it open. Yells ensued, consisting mainly of Chichi's indignant squawks. Gohan grinned as he phased out in midair, flashing through dimensions and dimensional barriers to coalesce in Otherworld. _

:-:-:-:

**One Month Later: Ten Years after the Cell Games **

Gohan stood on a hill overlooking his home upon Mount Paoz. Well, really, the hill was an extension of the nearest mountain, Mount Felferidge, but there is such a thing as poetic license here. (Aline/Snorts/) :D

So Gohan stood on the hill-mountain, dressed in his samurai outfit. He was waiting for a certain pair of terrible demi-Saiyans to be let off probation. (SP: They had played yet another prank, but this time on Trunks' teacher, Yuzi Takanako. Takanako-sensei was not happy. :D) He had been waiting for only five minutes, but it seemed like forever had passed to him, a forever wasted on a pointless and boring exercise when he could have been doing something else. Nevertheless, the demi-Saiyan waited, patiently leaning back on his heels, for the fun to begin.

And what fun it would be. (SP cackles)

"Finally," Gohan called, in a sudden explosion of sound, as the two forms of his brothers appeared. "What took you so long?"

"Trunks had to eat another plate of cookies before he would move! I tried to get him to eat on the way, but—" Goten started, obviously feeling as if he were under pressure.

"It would have looked too suspicious, I keep telling you that!" Trunks vociferated. "And besides, you were eating the cookies too!"

"Only because you were taking so long!" Goten retorted. The two bickered like the lifelong friends that there were, Gohan mused with a long-suffering look towards the heaven. They probably would do so for the rest of their lives, he added as an afterthought. (SP: (Sweatdrops))

Shaking his head at himself, Gohan looked up and interrupted. "What I want to know is," he began, "were they any good?"

The question halted effectively the squabble, as Gohan had wanted it to. He huffed with relief, for the constant arguing was starting to get on his nerves, as well as his ears. (SP: Anyone blame him?)

The two demi-Saiyans looked at him, and blinked, startled looks on their faces. Goten sheepishly withdrew a sack from under his jacket, which he handed to his elder brother (SP: The sack, not the jacket. (Narrows eyes at muse, whom closes her mouth)). Trunks looked abashed that he hadn't thought to bring any delicacies for Gohan to taste, never mind that his "brother" didn't need to eat at all.

It was the principle that counted, anyway.

Gohan accepted the bag with a grin. He knew from the aroma that not only were there cookies inside the pouch, but several other favorite foods of his as well: sushi, udon, and an especially large serving of nira-tama. Yep, everything he'd asked for was here, plus the cookies, which then equaled a feast.

He couldn't wait.

"Got your own food?" Gohan asked, tucking the satchel away without opening it. he was going to have to save it for later, when it really counted, after all. "It's going to be quite a tromp we're going to take."

Two heads, one black, the other lavender, nodded excitedly, their quarrel dissolving the face of the grand new adventure about to begin.

So, what is it already? Any guesses before we move on? No? Too bad! We won't move on then.

…

OK, OK! I'm kidding! (Authoress dodges rotten tomatoes) You know, one of those could have seriously hurt me! (Ducks under another volley of fruit) Sheesh, touchy. (Grouches)

So what was I saying? (Pointedly ignores the glares readers are giving her) Oh, yeah, the grand new adventure about to commence. Quite.

"All right, then, hang onto me," Gohan commanded. Two hands, belonging to two different and yet not so different people, reached out and clamped onto Gohan's jacket, just in time.

For not the first time, the second eldest Son (now the only Son dead besides Grandpa Gohan) ripped across dimensional boundaries on his way to Otherworld. But this time, he brought with him two very, very unusual bodies, two that really should not be making this journey any more than Gohan should from Otherworld to the Living.

Yep, you guessed it (at last!). The Demon Trio was coming to Otherworld.

The Kaios help us.

Oh, wait. Wait a minute. The Kaios _are_ in Otherworld. Never mind. :) Rather, _someone_ help _the Kaios_. Hell is coming.

:-:-:-:

The arrival of Hell in the form of the Demon Trio was surprisingly inconspicuous. Considering the fact that Gohan had landed them in a valley that was of medium depth in the Otherworld, well, it shouldn't really be surprising. But, this is the Demon Trio! They bring terror and doom with them wherever they go! They should be making people go pale at the sight of them! So why this sudden anonymity?

Could it be that Gohan didn't get permission to bring his brothers with him to Otherworld? Did it, er, _slip his mind_ that Baba had expressly forbidden him to bring any Living people to Otherworld, which was supposed to be the place for the dead? Never mind that Gohan was a dead person in the Living World. Those breaches happened all the time. In fact, it was rather _expected_, if totally against the rules, that there would be dead people in the Living World.

But Living people in the Otherworld? I don't think so! (SP: And thus, Gohan's rep as a rule-breaker dies hard. Aline: Quite.)

Gohan let go of Trunks and Goten, but the two demi-Saiyans were looking around with too much awe to be able to reciprocate the action. The dead Son stood by, grinning, as the ones with him forgot him with their interest in the strange surroundings before, beside, and behind them.

Otherworld in its glory was quite unsettling. The yellow sky, the pink-orange ground, the red trees, and the undulating outlines of the mountains in the near distance were not exactly things one would find in the Living World. It all seemed like a dream, actually, created by the surreal fantasies of the subconscious just after playing an extremely well-drawn, well-written fantasy video game. (SP:D)

But would such a paranormal dream have Gohan waving his hands in front of their eyes and going, "Yoo-hoo! Anybody home?"

…Sure! LOL, that doesn't happen to me, though. :D

"Yeah," Goten said, responding to Gohan's question. Gohan raised an eyebrow and looked with him at Trunks, whom was still staring around, unaffected. Goten smirked and released Gohan, instead reaching over to strike Trunks on the nose.

"Atch!" Trunks yelped, his hands flying up to cover his vulnerable joint (SP: (Sweatdrops)). He glared at Goten, now fully cognizant of the fact that this was not a dream. Goten only smiled evilly at him and dodged him as Trunks leaped for him. Snickers rang through the glen as Goten fled before the wrathful Trunks, the two engaging in a childish display of retrogression now that they were freed from the chains of the harpies which bound them.

Gohan watched fondly as his brothers ran wild and free amongst the ludicrous imaginings of someone's idea of Heaven, the rippling outlines of the grass, the trees, and the very mountains ridging the valley waving idly at him. These days, he was more apt to stand on the sidelines rather than join in, deeming it more preservationist of moments and memories concerning Goten and Trunks.

He was totally and completely wrong about that, but since it's neither here nor there and results not in the advancing of the story, we'll save that argument for another time.

(SP: Sheesh, I'm really being philosophical here in this little piece of Vigi Ange. What's up with that? (Suspicious))

Goten finally got tagged, becoming "it," and had to turn around and chase Trunks. Now it was Trunks whom was laughing and Goten whom was bent upon vengeance. They raced by smiling Gohan in the shadows, apparently not noticing him. As one, however, they braked and anchored down hard on their speed, consequently creating long tracts of upturned grass and dirt in their tracks upon slowing down.

They simultaneously turned and tread calmly over to Gohan, seizing his arms and dragging him not altogether unwillingly with them into the high-speed game of chase they struck up again few seconds later. It went on and on, none of them accomplishing what they wished for the day as all the world bent in and watched silently the rampage of the demi-Saiyans, quietly musing on the ephemeral quality of such things, and wishing for it not to end.

But lo! It ended, with Goten flopping down onto the pink-orange grass, Trunks following hastily thereafter, and Gohan floating uneasily not so far away, eyeing the two before him for any sudden moves. It was not to be put by them….

"I'm hungry," Trunks stated suddenly. The assertion was met with silence, then grass twitched as Goten sat up and turned around. Trunks looked up at him curiously, then sat up as well. Gohan hovered closer and sank wearily onto the sedge, completing the triangle begun by his brothers. More silence ensued, excepting the rustle of cloth and sandbag totes as the three brought out their containers of victuals. Gohan stared introspectively at his unopened udon, thinking almost nothing apart from how strange the pattern on the plastic was, the way it warped and twisted beyond all definition if he stared at it too long.

The sudden gnashing of teeth brought Gohan out of his trance. He looked at Goten, whom had put a piece of squid into his mouth with his chopsticks. Goten paused and blinked at him, obviously aware that he was interrupting the fragile haze that had settled over them. The two gawked at each, then simultaneously returned to their former tasks. Trunks looked on amusedly, contentedly chomping peacefully on his own ramen.

The silence continued as each of the trio languidly, silently, and comfortably, chewed on his food. Gohan was just reflecting that these kinds of things didn't happen to him very often, this tranquil, when Trunks came up with the same.

"I was just trying to remember," he averred, putting down his chopsticks, "how many times I've had a moment like this. A moment where I just sit down, relax, and don't do anything at all."

Goten smiled. "I was just thinking that. I don't think I've ever had one like this."

"I have," Gohan joined in. Goten and Trunks swiveled around to him and listened torpidly as he went on. "It was with Dad the few days before the Cell Games. We were lying in a meadow, looking at the clouds, with Krillin sitting on a rock not far away from us, and the wind whistling through the grass. It was one of the longest moments on Earth for me, and yet it was over too soon."

Gohan closed his eyes, remembering the image fondly, the fairly innocuous days on Earth before all went straight to hell.

"Did you ever have one after that?" Goten asked, interested. He didn't much know about Gohan's life before he was born, and was now taking a care in it. The serenity of the valley in Otherworld fostered the regard, where otherwise Goten was usually too busy or too energetic to do so. (Aline: …I think those two adjectives go hand in hand here, SP. SP: (Sweatdrops))

"Hmm," Gohan smiled absentmindedly, his mind fast-forwarding through all the years up to this moment here and now. "What do you think?" He looked over at Goten, his lips curling to match Goten's, then glanced at Trunks, also grinning.

Gohan then put back his head again and closed his eyes, simply listening to the breeze winding through the tall meadow plants, the muffled shift of it as either Goten or Trunks moved, and the soft song of the grasshoppers only meters away.

And then he jumped up.

"It's time to get back to the Living World, guys," he related brusquely to the two startled preteens still on the ground. "It's almost dark in the Living World."

"What!" chorused Trunks and Goten. "But it's still light here!"

"This is Otherworld!" Gohan snapped. "Time is meaningless for dead people! Now come on!" Scrambling forward, Trunks and Goten lunged for Gohan's outstretched fingers, whereupon Gohan wrenched them into a dimensional rift and set all three of them onto the path to the Living World.

True to Gohan's proclamation, the sun was setting when they appeared. Goten and Trunks gaped at the sun, then shook their fists at it, in tandem, startling a laugh out of Gohan. The older demi-Saiyan shook his head, then shooed them towards the house. He reassured them, "Don't worry, I'll take you back up there again, and we'll _really_ explore it then."

"I'll hold you to that, niisan!" Goten shouted over his shoulder as he and Trunks raced towards the tiny, tiny capsule cottage sitting religiously on guard on top of the mountaintops against anything evil.

"Okay," Gohan called back. He winced as shrieks erupted from inside the house, as undoubtedly his mother pounced onto Goten and Trunks. He could just imagine Chichi sobbing in relief as she banged them with her frying pan, scolding them and expressing utmost joy at having them back from whatever heathen adventures kept them away for so long.

Heathen adventures indeed. (SP sweatdrops)

Gohan huffed in sympathy and prepared to deploy to Otherworld. It was fortuitous that he began to contemplate his own situation, however: He could just vision Baba literally blowing off her top like an especially angry volcano, her face going red and her chest puffing up with her outrage. Gohan then realized that he had a very difficult decision to make.

Should he face her and deal with his punishment instantly. Or should he wait until tomorrow, when Baba had not only cooled down but had had additional time to think up nasty punishments for his torture? Gohan had no doubts that Baba would find out eventually; the witch was a clairvoyant after all.

Gohan groaned. The second option was not going to be pleasant; in comparison, a loud, public humiliation seemed wholly much better than private torture almost no one knew about. His hypothesis was further backed up from past experience, from mostly three sources: Chichi, Bulma, and Baba.

Ahh, the power of women (SP: No offense to guys is intended. (Looks pointedly at **miroku-has-darkness**)).

Huffing a preparatory breath, Gohan put his two fingers to his forehead and zapped to Otherworld.

True to his prediction, Baba was immediately in his face, yelling and flailing her arms wildly about.

"How _dare_ you! How dare you so flagrantly disobey my orders when I specifically told you NOT to bring people from the Living World here! I have told King Yemma about your transgression, and he will castigate you as soon as I drag you there. Now come on!"

Darting forward, the crone seized Gohan's ear and commenced the hale to the check-in station. Gohan made no protest; to do so would only make things worse. He merely lengthened his stride enough so that the pinch on his ear didn't hurt nearly so much. It didn't take them long to reach the check-in, which can be interpreted by the readers as either a good or a bad thing. (SP: (Sweatdrops))

As the pair stumbled into the walkway of the check-in, passing through about two or three thousand souls unheedingly in their course, there was a flurry of activity. Blue ogres, upon recognizing them, blanched and started edging across the floor towards the exit whence Baba and Gohan had come. Gohan raised his eyebrows at this, but continued forward to maintain lessening the pressure on his vulnerable ear.

However, when Baba did let go of Gohan's cartilage, finally, the demi-Saiyan almost didn't notice. For, standing before King Yemma, was...

:-:-:-:

A/n: What? (Innocently) Eeks! (Retreats before mob intending to tackle her and force her to type more) No! (Refuses to go down)

And, the sad thing is, you probably can't expect to have another update until I get a break! Oh, no! (Dodges hail of hard fruits) Ouch! (Rubs head) That wasn't very nice! (Pouts) Atch vell...

So, that was Gohan's master plan, to bring Goten and Trunks into Otherworld? And it wasn't legal, either! Baba totally had a coronary over it! But what'll King Yemma do to Gohan? Who's the newbie? How are Goten and Trunks going to explain where they were for the past day? Find all that out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **dfd **(twice), **Salazarfalcon**, **MarshmellowDragon**, **DBZ Chick1**, **miroku-has-darkness**, and **Tiara Shin**!

Finally, I stopped writing all that bleeding heart stuff! Great Scott! (Slaps hand to forehead) Will I be able to keep it up? (Shrugs, grins) We shall see!

Sayonara,

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 09.25.05_


	45. Chapter the Forty Fourth: Loquaciousness

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-fourth

Disclaimer: What? Me? Own Dragonball Z? What haveyou been drinking?

A/n: And I'm back! Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter. There's not such an enormous number of you as this past summer, but that's to be expected. (Shifty look) It still saddens me, though. (Cries)

I must march onward, however. There are enough of you that, if I don't update, I would be afraid for my life. That is, if you knew who I was and where I lived and what I looked like, but that's beside the point. (Grins)

To end this tangent I've gone off on, as I am liable to do, often, enjoy the chapter! AND REVIEW! (Not you, **dfd**, I've had enough from you. Hmpf! (Turns away)) :D

:-:-:-:

In the Preceding Chapter of **Vigilante Angel**—

_As the pair stumbled into the walkway of the check-in, passing through about two or three thousand souls unheedingly in their course, there was a flurry of activity. Blue ogres, upon recognizing them, blanched and started edging across the floor towards the exit whence Baba and Gohan had come. Gohan raised his eyebrows at this, but continued forward to maintain lessening the pressure on his vulnerable ear._

_However, when Baba did let go of Gohan's cartilage, finally, the demi-Saiyan almost didn't notice. For, standing before King Yemma, was... _

:-:-:-:

**Five Seconds Later: Ten Years after the Cell Games**

Oh, hi, Supreme Kaio! I wasn't planning for you to be there! (Is totally surprised) I was thinking of a different character to use. (Smirks suddenly, maliciously) However, for... _entertainment_ purposes, we'll stay with you. (Cackles)

"Your Honorable Eminence!" Baba greeted with surprise the newcomer. "What are you doing here?" (SP: Your Honorable Eminence? Oh, puhleeze. (Gags))

"I had heard," the Supreme Kaio started, with a glance at the tall figure loitering behind Baba, "that Living people had been brought into Otherworld. I was just demanding from King Yemma to know how that could possibly have happened." He turned to shoot a vitriolic glance at King Yemma, whom indeed was a flustered red, coloring his face nicely. The Mohawk turned back.

"He kept repeating over and over that he did not know how such a breach had occurred, but I could sense the lie behind his eyes," the kilted ruler continued. "Do you know the answer to my question?" he tossed to Baba, no doubt more politely than he had to King Yemma.

Now it was Baba who was fidgeting. The crone's sudden feelings of resentment and... fright? What could Baba be frightened about? Gohan was not the only person who was wondering this. He could understand the resentment, but fright? What was going on here?

"Your Honorable Eminence, it is not a matter of concern to you," she began, keeping her eyes down. Nevertheless, she was still blown away by the bark of astonishment from the Supreme Kaio.

"Not a matter of concern to me? This was a card ten dimensional breach! It is allowable for the dead to travel to the Living World," he huffed. (SP: Anybody notice that this whole dead-people in Living World but not Living people in Otherworld thing has been repeated a lot?) "But the only reason that Living people come to the Otherworld is if they're dead! Without a guide or a guardian, they cannot possibly find a way back into the Living! I don't know who..."

Gohan waited for the blowup as the Supreme Kaio finally seemed to recognize him. Black eyes snapped at him as purple changed into a color remarkably that of his assistant's, Kibito, and his white Mohawk trembled with the force of his rage.

If Gohan had been less of a stronger person than he was, he would probably be sweating buckets standing where he was. However, as Gohan _was_ a Super Saiyan Three, he only permitted a semi-large sweatdrop to form at the back of his head.

Okay, the jumping his brothers to Otherworld had been a bad idea.

As lightning crackled around the Supreme Kaio's body (SP: HEY! I thought only Saiyans were able to do that! (Goggles)), Gohan rewrote that thought.

It had been a _really_ bad idea. (SP: (Sweatdrops))

With every step that Supreme Kaio advanced, the floor trembled, the walls whimpered (or was that King Yemma, hiding under his desk?), the ceiling groaned, and Baba flew to the rescue. (YAY!)

"Supreme Kaio! If you lay one hand on that boy, I shall entomb you for a hundred years!" she shouted, pointing a wizened finger at the Kaio.

Shin gave her a brief glance and continued on, lifting his hands. Gohan, recognizing the action Mohawk-san was about to commence, bent his knees and thrust into the air. He was just in time to avoid the same paralyzing attack that the Supreme Kaio had attempted to use at the WMAT three years ago (SP: Was it really only that long? Methinks I must write faster!).

Gohan landed and shot off almost faster than the eye could see, on the lam from all the different attacks that the angry Shin threw out. The Kaio also attempted to hook onto Gohan's mind, but the demi-Saiyan was much too strong mentally to let him in so easily.

So there were some times when the purple attacks didn't come, because the Supreme Kaio was shaking off Gohan's rebuttal. During these times, Gohan put on more speed to get away farther before Shin started again. He didn't want to use up too much energy in his escape from the Kaio's attack, for he knew that Shin could endure for incredibly long times in a fight. Dabura's loss in the first round of the WMAT was proof enough of that.

In the midst of all this chaos, Baba was still shouting threats at the Supreme Kaio, whom ignored them, and King Yemma, hiding under his desk, continued to whimper. Gohan looked right and left to see that no ogres had stayed behind in, except for one which was supposedly loyal enough to Yemma that he would not run to save his life.

Souls, the white fluffy clouds that they were, were cramming up against the doors in their attempts to see what was going on. The spirits that were behind them and could not see the events as their colleagues in the front could, were complaining in loud squeaks about the delay. Gohan did not doubt that there was quite possibly a backup of about three or four thousand souls, give or take a few hundred, and winced inwardly at the pile of paperwork that King Yemma was to suffer through when this was over.

A second wince followed the shower of some small, supernaturally sharp rocks upon his skin. They were supernaturally sharp, or Gohan would not have noticed them (SP: Heh! (Sweatdrops)), and his skin would not also be sporting bruises from a few. Indeed.

The rock shower had occurred at the hands of the Supreme Kaio, whom had flung aside Baba the Fortune Teller in his incessant chase of the wayward demi-Saiyan. Baba had swung into the wall, the force and momentum of her trajectory enough to create a dent in the wall. The Supreme Kaio was not strong enough to do that, unless he had been gathering magic to force out another offensive move, and indeed, Gohan saw, that had been the case. Baba was not moving, but sparks, a red-violet in color, were fizzing leisurely about her form.

The witch's limpness caused Gohan to realize that this was really getting out of hand. He could sense her ki, still going strong, so he knew that she was still alive (SP: She _is_ alive, isn't she? I didn't see her with a halo when she was watching the Majin Buu events with King Yemma on that television of his. (Sweatdrops)). But, it could have been worse, and that Gohan would not take.

Taking his ki firmly in hand, he countered a blast from the Supreme Kaio with one of his own. In the inactivity that followed, Gohan took advantage of Mohawk-san's blinking condition to follow up with a rush. He seized Shin's wrists and snapped his head forward, cracking the Kaio's own head and jolting him out of the berserk haze he had fallen into. (SP: Well, that's one headache the Supreme Kaio's going to have! Heh! (Another sweatdrop joins the three others already there))

"Ooh," Shin moaned, swaying. Gohan released the Kaio's wrists and grabbed him by the shoulders, keeping him upright. They remained that way until the Kaio was capable of standing, then Gohan let him go and stepped away, a stern look uncharacteristically settling onto his face.

"Well, Supreme Kaio," he commented, watching Shin carefully, "you have caused some damage."

Shin looked confused, until Gohan gestured to the room around them. Holes were common in sight, nice deep crater-like ones, and Baba was still unmoving in her niche of the wall. Her crystal ball was no longer hovering, but had dropped to the floor upon the exact moment that Baba became unconscious. King Yemma was now peeking timorously over the top of his desk, blinking owlishly at the two figures still standing. The souls clustered around at the door, joined by two greatly daring ogres, were quiet, although loud sounds of "shh!" could be heard, in order to quiet down the complaints of those behind them.

"Oh, dear," Shin muttered, gazing at the chaos he had begun. He looked at Gohan and quickly looked away again, seeing that stern look on his face that really should be on his own. After all, that was what he had come here for in the first place, to punish a breach in the dimensions.

Speaking of that, how did this situation turn so quickly to the Supreme Kaio's disfavor? It always seemed to with these Saiyans.

He turned back and affixed his own stern look. "Gohan. You have committed a grievous—"

"Save it." Gohan cut off the Supreme Kaio as casually as if he were _not_ the Supreme Kaio. "I know what I did. I was thinking to provide a stress reliever for my brother and my brother's mutual friend, but apparently it was not a great idea. I travel across dimensions all the time, from the Otherworld to the Living. Why shouldn't my brothers do the same? Because the Living cannot come to the Otherworld," he answered for Shin as the latter opened his mouth. Mohawk-san closed his mouth again as Gohan barreled forth without waiting for him.

Yes, Shin always _was_ at a disadvantage with Saiyans were around.

"I get that. But shouldn't there be fun once in a while? A release from stress, from the cares of life? No mortal, or immortal, can go on carrying the burdens of the world or the universes forever. There must be a time to relax, to play, to be a child again."

As Gohan spoke, Shin had a sudden recollection of when he was a child, two or three hundred years ago. The memory was hazy, and yet clear, of running through the woods of Gakingstør, looking over his shoulder to grin at his mother, who waved back at him with a bright smile of his own.

"My brothers are growing up. Soon they will forget how to relax and play and be young again. I want to prolong that. I want for them to be kids for as long as they can. If they don't get this opportunity, they will turn out to be unhappy adults, unknowing of the happiness that they will bring to themselves if they will simply relax, take an interest in the world around them.

"That happiness may be transitory, but they will have had it, and they will know that they will have another opportunity to achieve it again, but that opportunity will not come if there are enough people set against it. Those people make the rules, the unbending laws that are supposed to govern order.

"What those rules don't do is provide for the happiness of those that they govern, so sometimes it's just a better thing if they are broken. Notice I said _sometimes_," Gohan broke off with a warning glance at the Supreme Kaio.

But Shin was no longer listening. He was wondering when he had forgotten to be a child, when those memories had started to fade. When was the last time he had visited his parents? He couldn't remember. Well, there were assistants for a reason, he said to himself. Kibito was perfectly capable of being the Supreme Kaio.

Well, perhaps he should have his own assistant, Shin countered. Plans formed in his head as he turned away from the wayward Saiyan standing expectantly before him and strode away. He pushed past the fortuneteller, whom was standing up now, then halted and reversed. He helped her up, absent-mindedly apologizing for his berserk rage, then wandered off when Baba no longer required his help. He had some manipulating and pleading to do.

(SP: And you deserve it! (Thumps the Kaio so hard he falls to his knees) Now off with you! (Bossily) After that blowup, I would appreciate it if you didn't come back for, oh, a hundred thousand years! (:D))

Gohan, being left behind, simply watched the Supreme Kaio as he walked away. He seriously hadn't intended to affect the Kaio so much, much less even utter the speech that he had. He really hadn't known he could utter a speech like that. Maybe he should look into public relations or something.

…On second thought, nah.

Gohan shook his head at himself and went forward to see if Baba was okay. Determining that she was, he told her, "All right, then. We've got Shin out. Go on, punish me."

Instead of cackling in pure diabolical madness, Baba merely regarded him with thoughtful eyes. She presented him with her short back in order to climb back onto her crystal ball, but then turned back to him, her usual inscrutable expression returning.

"The Supreme Kaio did a number on me. I'm in no mood to punish you now. But I'm warning you," she threatened, fixing an evil eye upon the surprised demi-Saiyan. "If you do this kind of thing again, I'm going to whoop your butt so hard you won't be able to move for three days. Do you hear me?"

A shocked Saiyan nodded, quickly becoming numb. A satisfied crone nodded and zoomed away, a set look on her elliptical face. She withdrew from the Otherworld check-in station, laughingly letting in the horde of fluffy white spirits as she opened the door. King Yemma let out a large groan as tens of will o' the wisps flooded into the check-in stations. They crowded up against Gohan's legs, in some cases passing right through him, giving him a chilly feeling. Only a few of them had any definite forms, although those did not have a body. Mostly those that did have definite forms reminded Gohan of someone, such as Gabrielle, or even Osi and Ron in one case.

_Must be their younger brother_, he mused as he cast his eyes over the brilliantly orange Takao-jin. _Hope he gets to see them in Upper Heaven._ Osi and Ron had told him repeatedly of their younger brother, Osijun (SP: Not another Osi name! (Slaps forehead)). They had admitted that they hadn't heard if he had saved a world, but considering their parents and their conscientious temperaments, it was likely. After all, both Ron and Osi had ended up there, and not at the same time. What were the odds that it wouldn't happen again. (SP: I'll let you figure that out. :P)

"Well, I'll just let you get on with your work," he called to the frustrated King Yemma as he edged his way out of the check-in station. Yemma, already frazzled, looked at him pleadingly, but Gohan put on a reserved burst of speed, one of those kept back from Shin, and raced out of there. He thanked whoever was listening for his prudence and for his lucky escape. He knew it would not happen again, which was why he was giving thanks. Second chances were extremely rare, especially on cases of this magnitude, and definitely if you were a proven _kilashiwen_.

Now he really was going to have to find a way to pass his days by other than thinking of ways to seriously break rules. (SP: Heh!)

Maybe drawing would do it. Hmm…. But what would he draw? No, that option was out. He would definitely be drawing only Goten and Trunks. Doing that would only incite him to more pranks and all that.

…Well, why not? The Otherworld could definitely use some pranks to liven it up. And who knew, maybe something else would catch his interest, and he'd draw that instead. Only thing was, he was sure he'd suck at it.

_"Practice makes perfect, Gohan!"_

No way. No way was his mother's voice ringing in his ears just now. There was just no way that was possible.

Groaning, Gohan hung his head. He needed to stay away from his brother some more. This was it, he determined to himself. This was the start of the weaning.

…He was already missing them.

:-:-:-:

"Niikun! Where have you been these last three days?" Goten demanded, rushing up to a mildly surprised Gohan. Gohan backed up a step to look, _really_ look at Goten. Goten's eyes were wild, there were black shadows under his eyes, and he looked like he had been in a constant state of agitation over a long period of time.

Knowing Goten and how he tended to worry about things that really weren't to be worried about, that was probably the case.

"Hey, calm down," Gohan stated, attempting to soothe his brother. He gave up and told Goten straight up, though, why he hadn't been around for the last three days. He could tell by the look on his face that nothing else would suffice. So, running his hand through his thick spikes, a difficult task to be sure, and related:

"Look, bro, here's the thing. You and I are going to start to spending more time away from each other. I'll keep visiting, but you're growing up. You don't need me so much as you did when you were younger. You've got your own friends now, and don't tell me," he interrupted, holding up a hand to stall any protests from Goten, "that I'm better company than any friends you might make.

"Thanks for the thought, but you have to give people a chance. That's the thing about life. You have to take chances, take leaps of faith, do things you thought you would never do. You have to do that, Goten, or else you don't live, you aren't alive. You don't want to end up like me, do you?" he joked. It was too lame to distract Goten, whom snared the opportunity to let his opinion be known.

"But niikun, no one's better than you are! I know I can count on you anytime, anyplace! I don't know that of anybody else except my family and the Briefs!"

"And that's pathetic," Gohan asserted, firmly. "Even _I_ have a broader base of people than that, and _I'm _dead. What does that say about you, huh?"

Goten blinked, arrested in his thoughts. _What_ had Gohan just said? "Nii—niikun? Did you just say…?"

Gohan blew his forelock in the air in frustration. Goten was missing the point. "Yes, bro, I have friends. I've had friends since I first died, okay. Now let's get back to the idea that you need more friends."

"No!" Goten yelled. "I'm perfectly happy with you and Trunks and—"

"Oh, really?" Gohan raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you screaming at me? You know, I came here to have fun with you. It's normally fun to be around you, you know that, but lately, all you're doing is arguing and being pouty. If you're going to be like this every time I visit, then I really think that you and I have to be apart more now. See ya!"

By this time, Gohan was in the air. He waved brusquely to the gaping Goten and powered off, turning his back on his brother. He didn't care that Goku was on the roof and Chichi was looking out of the window with a puzzled look on her face. He did care that Goten was streaking after him, yelling, "Oh, no, you don't!"

He glanced only briefly over his shoulder, enough to see that Goten was rapidly gaining on him. Looking up at the sky, he looked back, and his brother was almost to his heels. Just as Goten was about to grab them, Gohan phased from sight, causing the squirt to expend energy to keep from falling. When Goten next looked up, Gohan was already stomping around heatedly in Otherworld.

:-:-:-:

A/n: (Gawks) No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no! This was not in the script! How did my chapter run away with me like this? This was so totally not supposed to happen! (Cries) Gohan, get back here this instant and apologize to your brother! You, too, Goten! I want you to hug and make up, all right? Do you understand me? (Firmly)

Face it, SP, they're not listening to you. (Hangs head) I'm so pathetic…. (Sighs, rolling her eyes) I'll get them next chapter! (Determined)

So, the first recorded full break-up between Gohan and Goten! The little spat we had two chapters ago was precisely that, a spat. _This_ was an argument. The war is on! (Pumps fist) Uh, why am I doing that? This is _not_ a good thing! NO! All is NOT well when the brothers are mad at each other! What doom will fall upon the world because of this disunity? (Gets a crazy glint in her eye) Hmmm….

Aline: No.

Uh? (Jolted) And where have you been, muse?

Aline: (Looks at SP)

…Fine. (Grouches) We WILL have a villain, though, I promise!

Aline: You're going to have a hard time from me about it, _I_ promise.

Oh, no… (Folds into fetal position, rocking) Don't hurt me, Aline….

Aline:(Grins maniacally)(Looks at SP and decides the authoress is incapable of doing her next duty) All right then. Lots of things happened this chapter. There was the revelation of Supreme Kaio, who was demanding to know who did the dimensional mess up. When he saw Gohan, he went berserk for some reason (I guess he had so much stuff already on his plate, he kind of went GA-boom). He knocked out Baba and then Gohan gave him a speech about how rules were sometimes supposed to be bent. Nice. (Smirks) So Supreme Kaio gets this whole catharsis thing going on where he realizes that he hasn't visited his parents in a really, really, really long time, and… (Takes deep breath)

SP: (Interrupts, pushing muse to the side) _And_, (Shoots dirty look at muse) and Baba, affected likewise, decides to let Gohan off just this once. But then she gets so totally evil and lets in all the souls that were backed up, creating both an opportunity for Gohan to escape _and_ for _King Yemma_ himself to blow up. The check-in just won't be the same. (Shakes head mournfully)

Aline: We get introduced to yet another Osi Takao-jin, Osijun, who's the younger brother of Osi and Ron. Oh boy. (Ignores affronted look from authoress) Gohan decides to take up drawing to distract him from visiting Goten and Trunks each and every day, or thinking about it, anyway, even though he totally will suck at it. (Smug)

SP: Thanks a lot, muse, for your character support. (Grumbles) Yeah. But then, he comes back to the Living World and gets into an argument with Goten! NO! Will they ever make up? How long will they stay mad at each other? Or rather, how long will Gohan be angry at Goten? Will the Supreme Kaio be able to get that break of his? What would have been the punishment for Gohan for the "dimensional breach" had not the Supreme Kaio wrecked everything (as he usually does)? And will Chichi get her answers as to why Gohan was there when he was supposed to be dead? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**! Ooga-booga! (Celebratory dance)

Aline: Eeks. (Sarcastic) You're really creepy when you do that sort of thing.

SP: Why thank you! (Looks at muse with an ever-so-polite smile)

Aline: Right. I'm leaving. (Gets up abruptly, leaves office)

SP: Get back here! (Is only doing this to get the muse away from her) (Door closes with a smack!) Yes! (Pumps fist victoriously)

Thanks to **dfd**, **miroku-has-darkness**, **Tiara Shin**, **MarshmellowDragon**, and **DBZ Chick1** for reviewing! Now review again! (Bows)

All right? Happy now? And I still haven't done _all_ of my homework. My father would so totally NOT be proud of me. Oh well. (Shrugs) I'll do it tomorrow, even though it's a huge load. (Sweatdrops for the fifth time) Ah well, the pressures of being a writer in high school… (Pales) It'll be worse in college. (Slumps) Oh boy. (Shakes head) Bye… (Waves despondently)

¡Hasta la vista!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 10.02.05_

(SP: Wow, I was really talky today. Geez…. Wait a minute, I'm still talking. (Sweatdrops) Fine, I'll let you guys go. (Transforms into panther form and pads away))


	46. Chapter the Forty Fifth: Conciliatory

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-fifth

Disclaimer: No, thank you.

Disclaimer Two: Thank you! LOL! No, seriously, go to Chapter the Twenty-seventh. You will see all that you need to know _there_. 'Kay? Good.

A/n: Welcome back, readers! Thank you for staying with me here. I'm so happy. Here it is! The resolution chapter! But will a resolution be reached? We shall see! (Rubs hands delightedly) This is so fun! LOL!

Aline: Calm down, SP. (Rolls eyes)

No.

Aline: Don't you _dare_ use that Cannon on me. (Threatening)

Cannon? What Cannon? (Innocently)

Aline: I've had enough of this! I'm leaving! (Stomps her way out of the office)

No! I need your inspiration! (Doesn't care)

Aline: (Off) Too bad! (Slams door)

Don't slam my door! It's already almost ready to fall off its hinges! (Gets no answer) Hmpf. Looks like I'll have to take drastic measures. (Cackles)

Enjoy! (Shifts into panther form and—)

:-:-:-:

The Events that Transpired, in the Last Chapter of **Vigilante Angel**—

_He glanced only briefly over his shoulder, enough to see that Goten was rapidly gaining on him. Looking up at the sky, he looked back, and his brother was almost to his heels. Just as Goten was about to grab them, Gohan phased from sight, causing the squirt to expend energy to keep from falling. When Goten next looked up, Gohan was already stomping around heatedly in Otherworld. _

:-:-:-:

**Hmmm… About… Two Weeks Later. No, THREE! Yes, Three will do. :D **

**So, Three Weeks Later, Ten Years after the Cell Games**

It took three weeks for Gohan to become totally bored and miserable. During the first two weeks, he was steadfast in his resolve not to see Goten until his brother saw reason and admitted that Gohan was right. It became harder for him to do that well into the second week when Goten began to send him telepathic messages pleading for him to come back.

Gohan, however, mustered up the mental reserves and ignored the messages to the best of his ability. Finally, at the beginning of the third week, Goten appeared to realize that his brother wasn't going to come to him and ceased calling him. This actually made it worse for Gohan, whom kept expecting Goten's timid voice in his head, and when it wasn't, conjured it up. Additional torture.

(Shakes head)

Gohan was determined to stick it out, though, and actually managed to last another five days, getting into the middle of the fourth week (SP: So it's actually four weeks! Ha:P) (Grins) before he finally gave it up. He was helped further along in his journey by Baba, whom showed up and boxed his ears for not attending his guardian angel duties.

It was quite the sight, seeing Gohan run away from a short woman on a floating crystal with a broom in her hands, whacking away at him and yelling almost all sorts of things at him. Some of those things are non-repeatable, by the way. (Winks)

What was also quite the sight, but not quite as amusing, was the state in which Gohan found Goten. Goten, literally, was a skeleton. His ribs were showing, his cheekbones were standing out, his hands were trembling from lack of food, or too little food, and he had very little muscle left. It was amazing what a month's worth of self-punishment and depression could do to such a normally vivacious young man.

Besides the skeletal look, Goten's eyes were puffy and red, and he had bags under them. Tear tracks could be seen on those cheeks, and his breathing was harsh from sobbing repeatedly. His hair was matted and drooping, as if all the energy had simply up and left those spikes on a whim. Sheesh, even his _clothes_ didn't look happy, though they were fresh.

Goten was a wreck.

Gohan couldn't take it.

Striding forward silently, Gohan dumped Hageshiijutsu uncaringly beside the bed. He bent down and wrapped his arms carefully around Goten from behind. He slid onto the bed at the same time that he pulled his brother into his lap, a maneuver born from loads of practice over the past ten years. Goten tried to pull away with a soft whimper of protest, but Gohan refused to abandon him now, like he had in the month just gone.

"Dad," Goten whined softly, still struggling feebly. Gohan merely blew on the back of Goten's head, a signal that was especially between them and no one else. Goten sat up straight, his eyes widening and his breath coming quicker. Gohan captured the opportunity to pull Goten in even closer into his embrace. The squirt didn't resist this time, only curling up into a fetal position in order to bury his head into the crook of his elder brother's neck. He began crying again, silently, fisting his hands around large chunks of Gohan's shirt.

"Shh," Gohan whispered, starting to rock back and forth. "It's all right. It's okay to cry. I'm here, I'm here." He stroked his otouto's back with a large hand, moving it around in circles as Goten sobbed his heart out once more. Gohan sighed and closed his eyes, still rocking, as Goten's cries rang in the room. Neither of them noticed the door shut gently, a black-haired woman withdrawing with her hand over her mouth. She turned and padded down the hallway, the hand fluttering down to her chest as she breathed a deep sigh. Whether it was of relief or of something else, it would not be determined.

Finally, Goten stopped crying. Gohan was brought to instant alertness by the sudden silence. He tilted his head to the right in order to look down at his otouto better, shifting to a more comfortable position as he did so.

"Better now?" he asked, running his fingers gently through the tangles Goten's hair had acquired. "How long have you been like this, anyway?"

Goten nodded into Gohan's shoulder in answer to the first question. The second query caused him to lift his head and screw up his face in thought. "Since… last week. No, Saturday of…"

"It doesn't matter," Gohan asserted firmly. "I'm sorry I didn't take care of you. If I knew that you would be like this—"

"You're here now," Goten interrupted quietly, looking into his brother's face hopefully. "You can make up for it."

The declaration caused Gohan to smile tenderly at his brother. "Thanks," he replied. Goten grinned back, but the smile disappeared almost instantly as he suddenly doubled over.

"Ooh," he moaned, wrapping his arms around his stomach and folding his legs up. Gohan immediately stood up and headed to the door. Goten, sensing that they were moving, looked up.

"Uh, niisan?" he questioned, looking at the archway they were approaching. "Are you okay about walking through that door? I know that you don't really want to…"

"Don't worry about it, otoutokun. What's important is that we get some food into you right now," Gohan answered brusquely, but not unkindly. "Your health is more of a concern to me now than if Mom knows I'm your guardian angel or not." He raised an eyebrow at Goten, who only looked at him wonderingly in return.

A short silence enveloped the two as Gohan shifted Goten to an one-armed grip in order to wrestle the door open. Goten had done some work on the lock from the inside, trusting his engineering lessons with Bulma to help him shut the door more firmly. As such, no one from the outside would be able to come inside, not even a Saiyan, unless it was by Instant Transmission or some other martial arts technique. Once done, Gohan took Goten into both arms again and walked into the corridor.

Suddenly—

"Did you think that I didn't care about you anymore? That I thought you were the bane of my existence after that little argument?" Gohan asked. Although his gaze had returned to the halls he was maneuvering to get to the kitchen, he clearly was waiting for an answer.

He didn't get it when they finally burst into the kitchen, where Chichi had already laid out steaming dishes of food. Gohan set Goten down, but didn't let him go. Instead, he repeated, "Well, did you?"

Goten, still with that look of wonder on his not-quite adult features, slowly nodded, apprehensively. Gohan closed his eyes, pained, but he stood up, allowing Goten to make his way to the food. The younger demi-Saiyan looked even more uncertain, now, although he bravely continued to stand before his almighty elder brother, waiting for judgement. Gohan smiled ruefully.

"Go on, eat your food," he said, nodding to the table. "I'll still be here." Goten nodded again, still uneasy. He turned and shuffled to the table, his every movement seeming to take a lot of energy. Gohan winced again, his heart twisting, and cursed himself for this thoughtlessness. His _pride_ had been afoot again, his blasted Saiyan _arrogance_ that had allowed Cell to live longer than he should have.

How could he have forgotten the power it had, to ruin lives and make them unduly complicated? He had not caused the death of his father, but he had certainly exerted a large influence over his father's decision to lay down his life for the good of Earth. Why was he allowed to be a guardian angel? Why hadn't he been taken aside by Baba and made aware of the growing arrogance that had bounced back from the Cell Games? Why?

…What was he doing? He was blaming himself for things that he couldn't control again. He'd thought that he'd gotten over the trait long ago, but apparently the beatings he'd had at Baba's hands, at the Grand Kaio's, and the rest of Upper Heaven's weren't enough. He sighed. Sometimes you just needed something gloomy to slap you in the face to remind you of the lessons of life, or afterlife, in this case. (SP: (Winces))

A tap on his shoulder turned his attention to his right. There was his mother, keeping an eye on Goten slowly making his way through the quasi-feast spread out before him. Gohan bent his head and offered his ear to the matron, knowing that he was probably going to get yelled at.

He deserved it.

"I need to talk to you when Goten's done eating," Chichi whispered into his ear, her black eyes serious. Gohan nodded, equally as serious, and raised his eyebrow half-amusedly at Goten at the table. The squirt was watching them, his eyes wide with understanding. He, too, knew that Gohan was about to receive a serious scolding, and he was in all likelihood wishing for it not to happen.

"Done?" he asked, getting up from his position on the wall. Goten shook his head, warily, and stuck his fork into his mouth again. Gohan noted that there was nothing on the fork and sighed patiently.

"I might be more convinced of that if there had actually been food on that fork, bro," he pointed out. Goten looked sheepish, but made no more effort to pretend he was still eating.

"My stomach can't handle much," Goten explained, his voice matter-of-fact as he placed his fork on the table once more. "I was full after three plates."

"I noticed," Gohan pronounced, his tone at once so dry and inscrutable that Goten shot him a frightened look. "Sorry," the elder brother sighed, dropping his head on the wood of the table. "I'm punishing myself right now; I'm not really up for humor."

A smaller hand smoothed the hair down on Gohan's skull. "Don't do that. It's not your fault. You were right, Gohan," Goten's voice said, its tone pleading, "I _do_ need to have more faith in people and all the rest. I asked Mom, and she says that's why I'm in school, to get more friends. Dad told me you knew what you were talking about. Please, big brother, don't punish yourself. It's _my _fault that I'm like this; I'm the one who got so depressed I couldn't look after myself. Gohan—"

"Stop." Gohan raised his head to look Goten squarely in the eyes. "Don't _you_ start blaming yourself," he started fiercely. He didn't notice that Goku had come in and was watching the exchange with an inexplicable expression; Chichi had tears in her eyes.

"Believe me, bro," he continued, "when I say it's not worth it. You go through a lot of unnecessary pain if you do. That's _not _what you need. What you need is to get yourself better so that _I_ don't punish myself, although I'm going to be doing that anyway," he muttered to himself as an afterthought. Goten protested, but Gohan pushed impatiently on.

He said, "Look. Let's just agree that we could have had this discussion a better way, all right? I could have sat you down when you were a bit calmer and told you what I had in mind. Or I didn't have to get mad. Whatever. The thing is, I _did_ get mad, and this is the result. Fine. Let's work around that. The past is the past is the past," he asserted, quoting the Grand Kai from so many years ago. "That's all it is. Okay? Do you agree?"

Goten bobbed his head, acquiescing. Gohan smiled. "Excellent. Shall we start over now?" The youngest Son, his face lighting up with a brilliant Son smile, scrambled onto Gohan's seat from his and hugged him fiercely, giving Gohan his answer. The dead Son laughed, a clear scale of notes cascading into the air, as he carefully embraced Goten in return. At last, after nearly a month of exile, the Son brothers were reunited.

It's about time. (Shakes head)

"Now," Gohan stated, drawing back from the hug. Goten glanced up at him, the twinkle returned to his orbs, and waited. "Feeling up to a bath?" Goten's brother asked. He pointed to the tear tracks still evident on Goten's cheeks. "Those tear tracks are making me ill."

As usual, Gohan was able to get Goten to do something he normally would never do. For the demi-Saiyan slid off of Gohan's lap and headed out of the kitchen up the stairs. He shot a look over his shoulder at his elder brother, still sitting at the kitchen table, but knew better than to insist that Gohan come with him. That _had_ been the hard lesson he'd learned in the past month. Besides, Mom wanted to talk to Gohan, and Gohan didn't want him to be in the same room as a shouting Chichi.

Goten had to admit that he didn't want to, either. The thought felt like a betrayal, although Gohan radiated to him reassurance that it wasn't. Goten wasn't heartened, exactly, and determined to himself that he would stay in the room next time. Right now, though, he was still emotionally injured (this he admitted privately to himself as well), and Gohan wouldn't let anything happen to him.

Gohan waited until Goten was fully outside of the room before turning to his mother. He paused to send some encouragement to Goten, letting him know that he wasn't betraying him for not staying with him against Mom. He didn't think that Goten was sold, but as Goten proceeded to the baths, he decided to cover the finer points of the argument with him later. He was going to have to.

"All right, Mom," he said, bracing himself, "go ahead. You've got me."

Chichi needed no more push.

She started out calmly, though with a disappointed façade, and ended up yelling and half-hysterical. The former actions were completely unlike Chichi, but for this situation, in which the danger was to one of her sons _by_ her other son, she could hardly be faulted for an out of character façade in a situation she had no experience in. The latter actions _were_ completely like Chichi, so much so that _both_ Gohan and Goku were holding her as she sobbed her heart out. Nevertheless, she had some very interesting points to bring up.

As Goten's brother, Gohan was supposed to be a paradigm of responsibility. And he had been, for the most part, until this. However, he had seriously undermined some parts of that model of responsibility. One part was by not telling Chichi that he was Goten's guardian angel and that he visited from Otherworld each and every day.

If Chichi had known that, she would not have been so utterly unable to help Goten in his time of need. For a mother, that was _the_ worst thing that could happen. The whole situation had become worse when Goten refused to tell her what Gohan had been doing in the Living World at the time of the argument, or if this had been the first time Gohan had done such a thing.

Finally it was Goku who explained to her the whole of the logistics. By then Goten was getting progressively worse, and the final crushing knowledge that Chichi could do nothing about it, where it had only been a suspicion before, was too much. She had not fallen victim to any anxiety attacks on top of Goten's, for she had to stay strong, but Chichi would not forget this episode for a long time. She could quite possibly have nightmares.

Another part Gohan had failed in his duties as Goten's elder brother was what he had mentioned earlier. He should not have allowed anger to reach him, but should have handled the situation with a cool head and tolerance for his little brother's stubbornness. Chichi realized that it was a lot of pressure to be responsible all of the time (Gohan snorted inwardly at the thought), but it was still no reason for him to have gone off on that lark as he did.

These were the basic points, and now that these had been covered, Chichi gave herself over to passion, describing her feelings throughout the entire ordeal. It was this that caused Gohan and Goku to step forward to restrain her, neither of them looking at the other. They were too busy trying to cope with their own guilt.

When Chichi finally ceased moving, falling asleep on her husband's shoulder, Gohan stepped back. His mother's tirade had struck some chords in him, wounding him deeply, even as he told himself that he had deserved it. He had done more than injure Goten, but also his parents. And who knew? Mayhap he had affected Trunks, the Briefs, and the others as well. That was the thing with this group. Whatever affected one affected everybody.

Sometimes that was just a curse, as much as he hated to admit that.

Goku halted him. "Chi was right. But keep in mind, you were right, too. The past is the past. We've got to move on, keeping an eye out in the future for this kind of thing. With us, complacency has a little bit more of an impact on things than it normally would," he said, echoing Gohan's thoughts from earlier. The Son grinned. "Of course, everything has a little bit more impact on things than it normally would."

Gohan grinned as a sweatdrop formed in his hair. Scratching the back of his head sheepishly, he watched as Goku turned and carried his mate from the kitchen.

Now he was all alone.

Sighing, he dropped into a chair and put his head into his hands. How was he going to make sure this never happened again? He asked himself. How was he going to restrain his pride from going on one of its deadly rampages? He couldn't find an answer, but he knew it would come to him. when it did, it was going to be so simple he would smack his forehead for not thinking of it sooner. _Duh_, he'd tell himself, _you're an idiot! An idiot, I called you!_ And Arikeru would come poking around, curious as to why Gohan was berating himself.

…Oh, Kami. Gohan, as he predicted only moments before, smacked himself in the forehead. _Why didn't I think of it sooner? Because I'm an idiot, an idiot, I say!_ Arikeru would be the perfect solution to the problem. As he was a sword spirit, he had no conceptions of emotion, and therefore was the quintessential guardian of his pride.

He would still perform checks on his own pride himself, just to be sure that he could do it, but he would let Arikeru do most of the work. However, Arikeru was not going to be around forever (he knew this in his bones), so he would need something else to protect his pride. Why couldn't that be Hageshiijutsu? He'd train the both of his weapons in this position.

Excited by the thoughts running amok in his mind, he almost didn't react to the light tap on his shoulder. Almost is a good word.

"Huh?" he asked, swinging his head up. Goten stood before him, his black eyebrows raised. "What?"

"Are you all right?" Goten asked, his eyebrows coming together. "You looked like you were thinking."

"And that's a bad thing?" Gohan asked, reaching out to ruffle his brother's hair. Goten smirked, his own thoughts obvious on his face, making Gohan chuckle. The older brother shook his head in amusement, then looked up at Goten. "What's up?" he asked, knowing that things weren't over between them yet.

"You said we were going to start over, right, with the whole 'separating' thing?" Gohan nodded. "I'm here for that now," Goten affirmed. Gohan regarded seriously for a few seconds, then nodded, smiling.

"All right, then. You know the reasons for this whole mess, do you want a recap?" he asked.

Goten shook his head. "I've thought enough about them over the past four weeks," he answered.

Gohan barely refrained from wincing. "Right," he said instead. "Fine. How should we do this, then?"

Goten looked thoughtful. "Um, I was thinking, in the baths—" Gohan expressed surprise at this, as such receiving a nasty look from Goten. "_I was thinking_ that maybe we could work out this schedule and you know, follow it, make changes to it, and so on, or maybe we could do something else, and—"

"A schedule's fine," Gohan put in before Goten could go farther. He pushed the emotions still whirling around in him from everything else that had happened that day and focused only on his brother. Now it was his turn.

"Okay," Goten murmured, putting his major reasoning skills to work like never before (SP: LOL). Gohan watched fondly as Goten rapidly calculated in his head the promised schedule, his face pinched in that concentrated expression, his finger tapping his cheek. Some things never changed.

Thank Kami.

"All right. Will you be coming back tomorrow, niikun?" Goten asked, peeking up at Gohan.

The elder Son leaned back and crossed his arms. "It depends," he said, soberly, "on whether or not you want me to stay here with you tonight." He watched as surprise stamped its mark onto Goten's features. For some reason or other, Goten had not expected this offer. Why shouldn't he? He _was_ still recovering from a major traumatic ordeal, after all.

Surprise made way for thoughtfulness (SP: How polite!), as Goten considered the proposition. As Goten thought, Gohan meticulously scrutinized his brother. The food that Goten had eaten was already doing wonders for him: The cheeks were already showing signs of filling out once more; there was a healthier glow to Goten's face; his hair was lifting upwards; and the ever-present eye twinkle shone brighter than ever.

Goten also moved with more energy. The energy level was not _anywhere_ near the level that it was before Gohan had left him, but it was making leaps and bounds in progress. He was not even shuffling anymore, but was unknowingly rocking on his heels (an action he normally did) as he thought. Out of all the signs of renewing health Goten displayed, Gohan was the most glad to see the last one, for it meant that Goten was psychologically on the mend.

"I think," Goten said, jolting Gohan from his study, "that I can sleep on my own tonight. If I can't—"

"I'll come right down," Gohan promised. "I'll keep our link open so you can call me." Reaching for the mentioned link, he pried the door on his side off completely, so that he could never, ever, shut Goten out again. _There, _he mentally sent to Goten, _now I can't keep you out of my head no matter what. I better not catch you taking advantage of that_, he threatened, as Goten brimmed with amazed gratitude. Goten deflated, but only for a few seconds. How could he be kept down, with such an amazing big brother?

_Thanks, niikun!_ The gratitude he rolled down the link, warming up Gohan's heart with its cheery fire. The hug Goten flung around Gohan's neck helped tremendously in expressing the thanks, bringing more than a trace of a grin to the elder brother's face in the process.

"In that case, yes, I will be coming tomorrow," Gohan said, when Goten had subsided. The younger Son looked confused until his brother reminded him of the conversation they had been having before they went off on this tangent. (SP: (Sweatdrops))

"Oh," Goten replied. Gohan nearly face-faulted at the simplistic answer, but he didn't. Instead he just rolled his eyes and sighed, if good-naturedly. Life was moving on, slowly and steadily, at the Son household.

:-:-:-:

A/n:D

So Gohan and Goten have finally made up! YES! Ooga-booga! (Celebratory dance) So now the big question is, what will that schedule consist of? (Readers face-fault) What? I couldn't think of any others! My creativity all went into the stupid chapter, which ran away from me _yet again!_ The artistic faith I have in myself will never be the same. (Mournful)

So, what's next? What will Goten and Gohan think up for fun next chapter? What will Gohan do in the time that he's not with Goten? Who's the weird Osijun character I introduced last chapter? Will he have any part to play in this drama? I hope so; I'll be very unhappy to realize I just wasted space last chapter! Aline, better get your museling butt back here and inspire me now:D

Now, a few of you are complaining that I'm at a standstill (I'm _not_ naming names this time :P) with this fic. My answer is: Oh, really? I fail to see where that argument comes from, unless of course you are referring to the fact that I've been writing for a few chapters strictly when Goten is ten years old.

In _that_ case, yes, I am at a standstill. But this is a critical moment in the fic, one of the many few (LOL), and I would appreciate it if you would be patient with me here. This is a pivotal plot point, and if you don't like how slowly it appears to be going, then you have my permission to skive off for a few months and come back later to see if I've made any progress. I won't be offended. Much. (Shifty look)

However, if you aren't willing to ditch, then you'll be happy to know that next chapter, Goten will be eleven years old. That's all I'm going to tell you, see if that factors any in your reasoning. :) That's all I've got to say.

Thanks to **Goku's stomach** (twice; I love your name :D), **Tiara Shin**, **DBZ Chick1**, **miroku-has-darkness**, **MarshmellowDragon**, and **EVILNESS13** for reviewing! Arigatou! (Bows)

¡Adios!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 10.10.05_


	47. Chapter the Forty Sixth: Transfer

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-sixth

Disclaimer: A thousand apologies, but this one does not own Dragonball Z. (Bows)

A/n: Arghh.

Aline: Agreed.

SP: (Grouches) Don't mind us; enjoy. And by the way, the names of Goten's friends are in Japanese format. ("Last name, first name" format)

:-:-:-:

**One Year Later: Eleven Years After the Cell Games** _(Four Years post-Buu)_

A year ago, when Goten had returned to his middle school, he had still been skinny and drawn-looking. His friends, Uramito Miwako and Shikori Sun-Hi, were massively relieved to see him, if also shocked at the condition they found him in. Being girls, the both of them, their maternal instincts had immediately taken over. Goten had thought it better to just let them fuss, although Gohan, Chichi, Bulma, and even Eighteen had done more than their share of that already.

Trunks, when he had first glimpsed Goten after the final week of exile, had been stunned. He had said nothing at all throughout the first day, even in class; speechlessness appeared to be his theme that day. The second day he abruptly showed up at Goten's lunch table with his other best friend, Rochester Hadyn, the British transfer of a year ago. They had asked to join them and had not moved from Goten's side since.

As for Goten's teacher, Kinata Mitako, she was concerned about Goten's lack of attendance of school (he had missed two weeks, after all), and had just been about to call home when Goten appeared. She had barely been able to check her reaction when her door slid open and there stood a scarecrow of a student going by Son Goten as a name. The scarecrow had smiled at her, bowed, and told her, "You don't need to worry about me, Kinata-san. I'll be all right."

Mitako had not believed him at the time, but as the months trudged by, she had watched him get on cheerfully with his two friends, and then his two other friends from a year ahead. She had watched him flesh out again, as he bounced everywhere, and as he boredly, quickly completed his assignments each and every day. She had had to conclude that yes, he was going to be fine. Whatever had happened had been resolved; there looked to be not danger from it again.

Goten even graduated from the fifth grade with honors. Currently he was keeping up his "Excellent" grade in the sixth grade, in his last year at his middle school. He was the envy of Miwako, notorious for her less than satisfactory grades, and of Sun-Hi, who was aspiring to be the top of every class herself.

Trunks was in high school now, but he and Hadyn were already making waves. The walls of the principal's office still bore their signature in graffiti, and everyone present at the school was wary of them, even third-years. With Goten, Miwako, and the practical Sun-Hi set for arrival next year, the entire building really would have to be careful. (Sweatdrops)

On Gohan's side of the matter, things were not quite the same way. The dead Son had reached new highs in his infamy as a rule-breaker; it became a common affair to speak of "having Gohan's sprite" as a way of describing someone up to no good (as well as "pulling a Gohan"). Gohan himself viewed the whole debacle with exasperation; he wasn't going to bring any more people to Otherworld anymore, darn it! He didn't need reminders of the days of his raucous youth, after all. It was completely beside the point that Gohan was only twenty two years of age: He was still young yet. (SP: Heh!)

As he had told himself, Gohan took up drawing. Like he'd predicted, he sucked at it. However, as the months went by, he began to improve. By the time Goten turned eleven, Gohan could reliably produce halfway decent portraits of almost every fighter in Upper Heaven.

Gohan had it as a rule of thumb never to draw himself.

The training of Arikeru and Hageshiijutsu as guardians of his pride took on a far slower pace, much to the demi-Saiyan's displeasure. The sword spirit and his naginata just didn't seem to be able to understand what Gohan wanted of them; it wasn't as if it was a hard situation, to guard his pride. Alas, Arikeru and Hageshiijutsu balked the scheme at every turn. What Gohan had assumed would be the perfect hindrance to his pride was actually inhibiting the obstacle itself, that is the inability to perceive emotion.

It quite frustrated Gohan, to have this brilliant idea, a solution to a problem that had already caused more than some damage, and then to realize that the brilliant portion of the solution was actually part of _another_ problem. Indeed, it would be frustrating for almost anybody, ne?

Because Gohan was almost always frustrated, he meditated many, many times over the course of the year. He grew almost so skilled at the skill that he could sink into the calm, serene condition without a second's thought (it took half a second nowadays (SP grins)). This skill would prove to come in handy.

Or so I think. (Winks) Nope! I'm not telling you how, though. You've just got to guess, read, guess some more, and finally threaten to kill me for the cliffie I'm going to leave you on at the end of this chapter. :D

But, that's neither here nor there, and we've got to get moving so that we can catch the bus as the crow flies.

Incidentally, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy tells us that 42 is the meaning of life, the universe, everything. And that mice are really the rulers of this planet we call Earth.

Ah well.

Now, for Osijun, the newest Osi sibling, well…

Of course he made it into Upper Heaven. But I do have to wonder, how is it that all three (well, maybe not all…) of the Osi siblings got to Upper Heaven when their parents haven't? Have the parents died yet? If not, then why have three of their children died before them? (Looks shiftily around) Do you think maybe it's because…?

…Nah. Couldn't be. (Still looking surreptitiously about) Hm!

Osijun was unlike his siblings in that he did not have orange skin. Or it was orange, but not orange-orange, like Osi or Ron's. Rather, Jun's was a bit more yellowish in nature, with perhaps a bit of purple. His hair, however, was exactly, absolutely, totally, unequivocally, unquestionably, and categorically like his relatives' (SP: Big words amuse me. Have you noticed that:D). It was green, it was styled like a rather stiff Mohawk, and it ran down to the center of his back.

He wore only gi pants, showing off his rather thin frame, although Osi was determined to resolve that. She ignored the remarks both her male friends offered about the dithers girls flew into about things that in fact weren't to be worried about. Indeed, she refused to pay heed to them all day, so concerned was she with her brother's state of affairs.

At first, Jun was not very forthcoming and wanted to do almost nothing. Osi had to drag him everywhere and force him to take an interest in things with the threat of shaving, an activity Jun detested and feared above all others.

But then, after a few weeks, the newest Takao-jin began to follow Gohan around everywhere, peppering him with questions that Goten had only recently stopped asking. Gohan despaired of answering these questions, as Jun, as soon as one inquiry was over with, would only spring three others on him. Nevertheless, Gohan was patient and replied to the queries that he could.

Osi and Ron simply watched, smirking. What a way to help Gohan recover from the Incident of the Starving Saiyan, as they had dubbed it. (SP: Heh! What a sadistic pair, eh? (Sweatdrops))

Now, this is all good and well, these descriptions of events that happened during the earlier parts of the year. But what about the present, the here and now? What is occurring right at this very moment, a sliver of time so vague that it could be gone right as I speak about it or it could be stretching on into infinity, ending only when it ends and not when we know it ends? What is going on? What is the Earth up to, being endangered by a small force of diminutive but nevertheless powerful, disingenuous creatures call Tinkomathen?

…What? (Blinks) W-what did I just say? That the Earth faces yet _another_ life-and-death situation that will result in the obliteration of our beloved planet if a certain team of fighters fails to protect it?

…Yep, that's what I just said. …Great! About time! I'm finally creating my own villains, not relying on that Tori—Toriya—_Toriyama_ dude who… uh, I can't remember what he did. Hang on, don't panic, I've got it down here somewhere…

Oh well. (Gives up) Let's move on.

The day on which Gohan was due to visit Goten was… well not quite like any other. It was supposed to be, yes, but somehow, somewhere, someone screwed up the script and put zucchini in Gohan's sushi. Now Gohan was not a fan of zucchini in sushi, _especially_ in sushi. The zucchini was fine independent of the seaweed and rice combination that was one of Gohan's favorite dishes. However, _in_ sushi….

The Saiyan much preferred crab to zucchini.

So Gohan's day started out weirdly. Fine. It only went downhill from there.

Gohan engaged in other of his bouts with Hageshiijutsu over his pride, and was just about to settle into his meditation when Jun, of all people, appeared. Gohan took a single look at the approaching Takao-jin and immediately resigned himself to not having a good day. Such was the effect of Jun sometimes, and true to the Saiyan's cynical prediction, a migraine of sorts hammered away on Gohan's head after only three of Jun's all-important investigations into the universe.

Ouch. (Sweatdrops)

The demi-Saiyan had only just managed to chase Osijun off when he became aware of the fact that he was supposed to have been in the Living World, oh, about thirteen minutes ago.

You know, thirteen is such a lovely number. It is regarded by many as bad luck, but really, it's completely misunderstood and—

"Get on with it!" someone (or _something_ (Glares at an object readers can't see)) cries. Now who would that be? (Shades eyes and looks around) Weird. I can't see anyone. (Shrugs) Oh well.

As I was going to say before I went off on that tangent and was so _rudely_ interrupted—(Pauses, listens, hears nothing out of the ordinary) Right. _Now_ you don't interrupt. (Shakes head, whistles) Chicken.

Anyhow, onward. Gohan growled under his breath and hightailed it out of there, berating whomever had control of his afterlife for his or her or _its_ love of tormenting him. Really, what had he done to deserve this day? It was not as if he'd committed any serious crimes lately… (Aline: Serious? What do you mean, _serious_? SP: Good question. :B)

In his rush to get to the Living World, the demi-Saiyan only absently registered the sight of a certain glaive lying in the pink grass not three meters away from him.

:-:-:-:

When he finally made it to the kitchen of the Son home, he only found a plate of cookie crumbs. Even though he had used his ki reader to locate his family, he did not see their worried faces surrounding the kitchen table. Was it just him, or did the Sons move abnormally quickly to another place while he transferred between the dimensions? It had to be just him. The fact that he needed to lock on someone's ki in order to pop between dimensions also played its trump card in his decision of this declaration, as simple and direct as it was.

Frowning, Gohan tried a ki reading again, and discovered that his parents, Trunks, and Goten had shifted outside. Now why was that? It was fall; fall meant colder temperatures, and colder temperatures usually discouraged people from going outside, especially in snow.

True, his family wasn't normal; colder temperatures meant nothing to Goku, Goten, or Trunks. But Chichi….

It didn't make sense to him. What was going on? What was his family doing out on the mountain just outside of the house on the poor, rocky, dark soil? There couldn't possibly be anything that had any entertainment value out _there_….

Could there?

Growing ever more confused, Gohan breezed his way impatiently outside. This day _really_ wasn't going well for him at all. He'd be glad when it was over.

Now the forms of the people he sought came into view. He could quite clearly see the backs of Chichi, Goku, and Trunks twenty meters away from him (SP: The benefits of super-alien sight, eh?). Relief broke over him in waves; he hurried toward them with large strides that were quite hungry, eating up the ground as they did, and caught up to the people in next to no time.

"Hey," he greeted, hoping his voice was casual. He received only strange looks in return, as if he had sprouted two heads. Trunks was the most vocal about it of the three present.

"What are you doing here, Gohan? It's Wednesday, not Thursday. Go back to the Otherworld and come back tomorrow," he stated. He reached over to a group of bananas spread out with other foods on the red and white checkered blanket and quickly began to peel one.

Gohan frowned again, his brow wrinkling in distinct lines as he stared at Trunks. "Wednesday? No, it's Thursday. Thursday is the day that I come to visit Goten according to the schedule we brought up. Or didn't you get the memo?" The demi-Saiyan winced. His frustration was forcing itself out of its cage now.

Trunks apparently didn't notice. "I got it, but you've gotten your days mixed up. Time really _does_ pass weirdly up there, doesn't it? Kakkarot told me." He motioned over to Goku, whom was eating three bowls of rice at the same time at an indigestion-inducing pace. As per usual.

The only son of Vegeta finished his banana off nonchalantly as Gohan examined him closely. Since when did Trunks call Goku "Kakkarot"?

"Niisan!" a voice called from afar. Gohan looked back up the mountain and waved to the hasty Goten barreling his way. He turned back to Trunks to tell him "I told you so," but he jerked back in surprise as only the cold dirt of the mountain saluted him. Trunks, Chichi, Goku, the blanket, even the food, were gone.

"There you are, niisan! I was started to get worried," Goten called as he leapt lightly from rock down to rock. Gohan blinked and refocused on his younger brother instead. Goten's hair was as messy as always, the black eyes were sparkling, and his gi was fresh, as if he'd just changed into it. There seemed to be nothing wrong with his sibling's picture, but there was. Gohan couldn't put his finger on it.

"Brother!"

Gohan's eyes widened, and he looked over his brother's head at a second image of Goten standing in the doorway of the Son house. He looked down again, and looked back up, eyes wide, at the figure.

The first Goten was gone.

"Yes?" Gohan shouted back, disorientation setting in. What in the Home of the Losers was going on here! Frustration began to bubble up once more, and a surge of power rushed through him.

"Big brother, are you all right?" Somehow or other, Gohan perceived that he was directly in front of his house and, ultimately, in front of the disturbing Goten. Beginning to back away, Gohan nearly stumbled as once again, his title rang through the air.

"Niikun!"

Gohan turned around and gaped at the small, but growing, form of a wild-haired figure dressed in a comfortable school uniform (_that_ was what was wrong with that first Goten! Gohan thought triumphantly (even as SP sweatdrops)) hurrying toward him. It was Thursday, a day of school, after all, and thirteen minutes was certainly not enough time for Goten to get to home and change into a fresh gi outfit. Gohan usually arrived an half an hour before Goten returned home, anyway.

Dreading the result, Gohan looked behind him at the other Goten, only to have the open door and the cheerful kitchen of the house greet him instead. Groaning, he reflected that he certainly hadn't left the door ajar; he distinctly remembered closing it on his way out.

Now, at the point, you would normally assume another Goten would pop up, frustrating and or spooking Gohan even further, while the current one disappeared. In other similar plots, the second Goten would stay with the third one as a fourth one surfaced, a fifth, sixth, seventh, et cetera, until a whole mob of Gotens surrounded a Gohan that was rapidly reaching the breaking point concerning his patience. Or Gohan could see the third Goten, then not, and be all alone again.

Normally, you'd assume any of those, right? Wrong. That sort of thing isn't happening in this chapter. So, what's the only thing left to consider? Uhm…

"Niikun, niikun, horrible things have been happening! Everybody has been hallucinating, and _oomph!_"

Any doubts about the authenticity of _this_ Goten Gohan had (and he had a few, but only a few) instantly flew away when said vision slammed straight into an invisible wall. The phantom staggered back, his eyes crossing, even as Gohan rushed forward on his own to help. He, too, plummeted into the unseen wall, but his recoil lasted only for a few seconds before he thrust his shoulder against the obstacle. He bounced off it again as if he were merely a fly, injuring his shoulder in the process. Shock assailed him at the concept, for customarily nothing was hard enough to hurt a demi-Saiyan.

Hands on his hips, Gohan surveyed the area separating him from Goten. His brother watched him from his position on the ground, his black eyes wide with an indiscernible expression. What that expression turned out to be, we shall never, ever know, for an uncomfortably high noise temporarily took all hearing from the both of them.

Wow, that's a really, really high frequency sound, isn't it? LOL! (Sweatdrops)

"Arghh! What is that noise?" Goten shouted, covering his ears. Gohan did not respond; he was too busy weaving a ki spell to tone his hearing down so that the clamor didn't grate on his nerves (and eardrums) so much. He finished and looked up to see Goten prostrate himself on the ground, blood seeping out of his ears, his mouth stretched in a silent scream. Gohan could only take so much before he began anew the crusade against the imperceptible Saiyan-proof barrier standing contrary to him. Rage pushed its way to the forefront once more as the war proved futile once more; Gohan watched, aching fiercely, as Goten fumbled around on the ground, searching for something, _anything_, to relieve the pain.

Suddenly Gohan had an idea. He smacked himself for not thinking of it earlier, and started concentrating so intensely on his action that it almost didn't execute. Ah, but if only wishes were horses. Really strong horses, able to withstand the force of being ridden by a demi-Saiyan like Gohan. Why do I make this claim? Well, you see…

Well, I'll be blunt. The stupid shield _bashed_ Gohan on the hand when he tried to IT. he even did it for a time, IT'ing, like I said, but that silly fortification smashed him down as if he were just a ball and the wall was bouncing him. at least that's what he felt, at any rate. (Sweatdrops)

Groaning, Gohan slowly pushed up into a sitting position, feeling every ache he'd accumulated in the past two hours. That included shaking off Osijun, he griped, his fingers examining carefully the proportionally large bump on his scalp. He winced at an especially tender spot and snatched his fingers away. it was only now that he noticed that the shrill siren had ceased, and that Trunks had joined Goten.

Trunks, too, appeared as if he had survived stepping on a landmine, if such a thing were possible. (SP: (Sweatdrops)) His expression was haggard, the roughness of the expression helped by the blood trickling down the bridge of his nose. His lavender hair was in disarray, and, as he lifted them, his hands bled as well. Gohan concluded logically then that Trunks had clutched his hair so hard that he'd torn some of his scalp apart, in the process clenching his hands so tightly his hails had dug into his palms and therefore the veins, causing hemoglobin to spurt out. Aye, high frequencies were the bane of all existence.

And now they were both watching him, Trunks with his indigo eyes, Goten with his jet pair. They breathed as hard as he did, ached far more, and were just as desperate, as frustrated, as he was.

Well, that was going to serve them well, he thought, grimly satisfied.

After gaining his footing again, Gohan leaned up against the barricade and beckoned to the demi-Saiyans. They came readily, almost too readily, and listened with a hungry despair as he spoke.

"All right, you two. It looks like I'm trapped in here with no way out. There's nothing I can do except think of ways to get out of here." He paused. "However, there is something _you_ can do."

"What?" Goten demanded frantically, the whites of his eyes emerging in his anxiety.

"Whoever ensnared me in this crazy prison did so for a reason, right? Obviously, someone's after us and wants all the major players out of the game, namely me. but, they forgot one, no, _two_ very important things. One, that I'm not the _only_ major player, and two—"

"We're two of the strongest fighters around after you," Trunks whispered. Triumph gleamed in his eyes; it was an expression much more preferable to the despair previously inhabiting the house. Gohan only affirmed Trunks' declaration with a smirk.

"It seems to be your turn to save the world now, guys," he observed, his tone rich with pride. Even as Trunks and Goten squared their shoulders, he quickly added a warning: "Watch out, you two. You don't know what they have to attack with." He glanced meaningfully at the half-meter of space obstinately holding them apart.

Goten grinned. "It's _them_ who has to watch out. We've learned a lot, not only from you, but also from our parents."

"But mostly you," Trunks amended, his face lighting up with anticipation (Aline: Like a Christmas tree? (Deadpan)). "Don't worry, we'll keep our pride in check."

Gohan had to grin wryly as he noticed them bounce away. Of course, Trunks had taken the words right out of his mouth. He _had _been about to remind them to guard against excessive self-esteem, to not make the same mistakes he had against Cell. They were even around the same age, he reflected, although they had not been fighting enemies for as long as he had been at this point in his life. He thanked the arbitrary laws of the universe for that.

Knowing that his brothers would be fine, Gohan instead turned his attention to his own predicament. He overpowered a now-familiar sense of animosity, slipping into his meditative trance (SP: Ha! Told you it would come in handy later!) in order to control it and view the world a little more calmly.

Just a little.

Okay, now that that was done, he told himself, re-opening his eyes, how was he going to get out of here? He could not escape physically through any technique. The linger bump on his skull testified to that. How about mentally? Could his mind flee what his burdensome body could not?

It was worth a try.

Letting the calm of the meditation wash over him again, he let his legs fold automatically Indian-style (SP: Ah, yes, the Lotus. An excellent pose for all around use. (Has no idea what she's talking about!)). Closing his eyes one more time, he let himself go.

Immediately the feeling of being caged arose around him. It was already clear to him that he could not coerce his way out through this method, either. He could sense for weaknesses better in this state, he reminded himself sharply before anger at defeat could be born again. Seriously, some Kaio or other was going to get his (or her) head bashed in before this day was over.

So that was what he did. He unearthed that he, and the house still behind him, were ensconced in a giant circle. Whenever the demi-Saiyan's mind wandered too close to the protective material, it buzzed slightly in warning. It was through this that Gohan tested out the boundaries of the orb, which were from just in front of him over to centimeters above the top of the house to the end of the garden his mother had scrounged up somehow behind the house.

Gohan was glad that his mind was incorporeal: He doubted that it would have been able to pass over the top of the house otherwise. (Sweatdrops)

Speaking of being incorporeal, things that possess this quality can go through things, right? Things such as the ground? ;)

The same idea struck Gohan between the shoulder blades only a minute later. His intellect flew eagerly to the loam near his body and perched lightly on it, preparing to undergo some massive discomfort. Then without another thought, it plunged into the wave of sediment.

:-:-:-:

A/n: (:D)

Muchasgraciasto: **Chris Bennett**, **Kat**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Tiara Shin**, and **MarshmellowDragon** for reviewing! (Bows)

_Sinon!_

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 12.03.05_

PS—Resistance is futile. You know you want to do it. Go on, I dare you to do it! Yeah, you! You're a chicken unless you click that big ol' button down there next to the "Submit Review" action bar thingamabob. A CHICKEN, I tell you:P (LOL!)


	48. Chapter the Forty Seventh: Alien

**Vigilante Angel: **Chapter the Forty-seventh

Disclaimer: 'Taint right, this distrust. I didn't do _nothing_ like owning Dragonball Z. (Crosses arms defiantly)

A/n: Right, then. I just started looking over prospective colleges on the collegeboard site, and boy, is there a lot! Whoo... There is some information that you just can't get in those brochures. :D

But of course, I'm boring you all. Don't mind this rather happy junior; enjoy this chapter. (Mutters under breath) That is, if you don't kill me.

Onward!

:-:-:-:

Earlier on **Vigilante Angel**—

_Gohan was glad that his mind was incorporeal: He doubted that it would have been able to pass over the top of the house otherwise. (Sweatdrops)_

_Speaking of being incorporeal, things that possess this quality can go through things, right? Things such as the ground? ;)_

_The same idea struck Gohan between the shoulder blades only a minute later. His intellect flew eagerly to the loam near his body and perched lightly on it, preparing to undergo some massive discomfort. Then without another thought, it plunged into the wave of sediment._

:-:-:-:

**Thirteen Months Later: Twelve Years Post-Cell Games**

_The Tinkomathen were tiny creatures, surprising Gohan when he saw them for the first time. In his incorporeal form, Gohan floated kilometers above the ground, watching as his brothers decimated the ranks of the metal-coated extraterrestrials. Nor did the demi-Saiyans have it easy: The opposing soldiers were advanced in technology, producing things that Gohan had never even _imagined_ before. _

_Among those objects were swords of sound, which had been a chip off of the generator block that had spawned the earlier screech. Another weapon the Tinkomathen employed Gohan dubbed as the "materializer," since it released a bolt of energy that transformed into a large, heavy object of some sort that was sure to squash the foe. _

_The materializer, Gohan figured, was designed to read the strength and/or power levels of the victim and accordingly adjust its output energy level to exceed the reading. As such, the object the energy transformed into was always stronger, heavier, and more than the enemy could handle. _

_What the Tinkomathen had not calculated, however, proved to be a weakness. Trunks and Goten were simply too fast to let something just _fall_ on them, no siree. They became quite adept at dodging the energy bolts themselves, causing whatever manifested to drop on thin air. This frustrated the Tinkomathen for quite a while, before they finally used their common sense and gave up on it. Sheesh. **(Shakes head)** Just because ya got a lot of technology you know how to use doesn't mean you're smart enough to know when _not_ to use it. Nyaah! **(Raspberry)**_

_The swords of sound trouble the two demi-Saiyans more, however. The screeches emitting from the long slim bars shaped frighteningly like television remotes very often caused Trunks and Goten to halt in their tracks and attempt futilely to escape the sound. When this happened, the Tinkomathen then would try to use some other technologically advanced implement of war they had and obliterate them. _

_Now, seeing as this is MY story, and it is a story about Gohan's custody of Goten (and what an excellent fic it is, if I do say so myself), do you think I would let those rats in metal kill off my two second favorite characters? (Of course, Gohan is the favorite here, is he not? (:D)) _

_If you answered "yes," you simply must find a corner and chain yourself to it with your back facing the rest of the room so the Panther can spank you. _

_If you answered "yes" but are crying "no" now because of my earlier description, then I must say to you,_ "Yeah, that's what I thought."

_But if you responded "no" and are still proclaiming "no" then good for you. _

_(If you said "no" at first but are replying "yes" at second, then you're masochistic. Get away from me. **(Makes sign against evil with index fingers)**)_

_Anyhow, the answer to my question is obviously "no." Now that we have established that, **(Glares at the few ppl who said "yes")** let's get our image of the Tinkomathen before they are wiped out completely. **(Snickers)**_

_As said earlier, they were tiny beasts, with a metal coat for armor. They possessed six feet but stood on only two, thus using the other four for their oh-so-superior arms. **(Raspberry)** They looked almost like the grotesque spawn of an anteater and a spider (SP: Euw! Aline: **(Looks green)**). They were on the small side (SP: **(Snorts)**) due to the spider, had the six legs, though they were not as spindly, and had a few too many eye sockets to count. _

_The anteater contributed its long snout with its weird tongue, and its big nasty claws were found in a modified form on these things. Not only were the claws metal, but they were bent in a sickening parody of fingers. Certainly, they were awkward and unfit for human-made things. Unfortunately for us, their commodities were Tinkomathen-made, which meant no human was worthy to operate their junk. Drat. _

_Having said that, though, I would like to ask one thing: If there aren't any Tinkomathen around to work those better machines, then…? _

_You guessed it! The Earth is saved. Muahaha! LOL. _

_Of course, where would we be if the two sides didn't communicate? This isn't a full-fledged war, with two armies standing on either side of a field like a chessboard, standing with grim faces upon the brink of insanity in the final calm moment before the storm. Of course, one side would have had about, oh, one thousand and twenty beings to fight for their cause, while the other side had only…_

_Two. **(SP sweatdrops)** Of course those two would have been joined with three other super fighters in Goku, Gohan, and Vegeta, but the Tinkomathen trapped all of these somehow. Drat. Nevertheless, Goten and Trunks were strong fighters, having been trained not only by Gohan, but also secretly by Goku and outright by Vegeta. No worries there. _

_But anyway, back to the dialogue. "Your _Eyarth_ will make a good planet for selling," a Tinkomatheni cried shrilly from aboard a huge boomerang-shaped vessel floating gently a few meters off of the ground. This was after the initial attack they had already launched, which makes no sense whatsoever, now does it? Sheesh. _

_The boomerang was the only flying vessel that Gohan saw, but it was apparently enough to contain all one thousand and twenty of the Tinkomathen. The Tinkomatheni had continued in ITs strident voice, "I am Natyth, dershifor of the glorious Tinkomathen race! Prepare for your doom!" _

…_Riiight. Like that's going to happen. That was what Trunks effectively said as he stood stolidly in front of the IFO, Identified Flying Object (SP: Instead of UFO, Unidentified Flying Object. Get it? Aline: We get it. **(Dryly)** SP:D). _

_"We don't care if you're peace protestors from Mars. You're not going to destroy this planet if we can help it!" Goten added his support to Trunks' argument by opening a volley of ki blasts on the boomerang, over the heads of the standing army. The vessel received ten hits before the force field snapped into place, absorbing the two hundred others sent its way with no further harm. _

_"No, no, no," Natyth's voice chuckled patronizingly. "We don't wish to destroy planet _Eyarth_," **(SP sweatdrops)** "We merely are going to sell it to the" and here followed a string of gibberish so long that it stupefied Trunks. Goten had only enough presence of mind to ask, "What was that last word again?" though weakly. _

_Natyth seemed to be annoyed when IT answered again. The thread of nonsense streamed out from whatever IT was using to communicate (SP: Although how IT knows Japanese/English is beyond me. **(Sweatdrops)** Aline: **(Rolls eyes)**) again. _

_Now Goten became speechless. Gohan, however, was thoughtful. Where had he hear that before? It had appeared in a book somewhere. But what book, and what information did it have? The dead warrior's mind crossed its legs automatically as it thought, becoming oblivious to the scene below in the process. _

_So while the sounds of lasers, things exploding into existence, and attacks as they were shouted and blew things up went on below Gohan, the demi-Saiyan took no notice as he floated in midair. Despite the fact that truly momentous matters happened right under his very nose, the warrior instead tried almost desperately to remember what that line of drivel meant. _

_So, what does that mean for us? It means, as the most insightful of you may already have guessed, that we are going to see none of the action. Instead, we are going to have to suffer through pages and pages of SP's jabber as she tries nervously to fill up the space until Gohan finally notices what's going on, and therefore won't (hopefully) be hunted and shot for being _such_ a panther. _

_Right, here I go then! **(Crosses fingers for luck, takes deep breath)** Did you know that the Tinkomathen are based in a small part on the Vogons from _The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_? The reason they blew up the Earth is not quite why **my** aliens are here for, but it certainly helped. LOL. _

_I am intentionally making the Tinkomatheni mispronounce Earth (so now it's _"Eyarth"_), because hey, they're not native "Eyarthlings". They don't know how to say it right. So naturally, either Trunks or Goten is going to yell, "It's _Earth_, you moron, not _"Eyarth"_! Get it right!" _

_Wait, I think I just heard that now. Yes, it was Trunks who shouted it. Really, Vegeta's son has to lean to be more polite, especially while he's fighting. It's not good for someone so young to be so disrespectful of his elders. **(Being hypocritical)** :D _

…_All right, who wants to help me slap Gohan out of his silly reverie? (Readers yell acquiescence) Am I really that annoying? **(Tearfully)** (Readers are silent. Aline: Yes, SP, you are.) Noo! **(Goes off to cry somewhere)**_

_EXTRA NOTICE: We of **AASN **interrupt this program to bring you a very important message. SP is CRYING! You've all gone and hurt her feelings, and now she won't write anymore of this story! It's all your fault! All your fault! You should be ashamed of yourselves! **(Clears throat)** Ahem. That has been your message from **AASN**. We hope you enjoy the rest of the chapter. —**AASN** Managers_

_(Aline: SP, get back here! You still have to do the rest of the chapter! (Silence) If you don't, then _I_ will! (Sudden flurry of activity as SP dashes in and pushes Aline out of the authoress' chair) SP: No! _I'll _do it. **(Glares at muse)**)_

_Well, now that I've been properly threatened by my muse **(Glares again)**, let's move on. _

_So where was I last? **(Gets handed a note)** Ah, yes, the slapping of Gohan. Right. It turns out that this action is unnecessary, for right then he felt a _snap! _and heard an inaudible _crash! _(inaudible? Is that even possible?), and then nothing. Inside, however, Gohan knew something of great importance had happened. But what? _

_The demi-Saiyan relaxed when he discovered that it was only the barricade around his body falling. He returned peacefully to his thought train a moment in later— _

_WAIT A MINUTE! Do you mean to tell me that the invisible wall separating Gohan physically from his brothers is gone? Yep, it sure looks that way! Yay, finally we find out what happened! **(Skips along to Gohan's body, readers following, all whistling cheerfully)** Wait a minute. **(Stops)** Where's Gohan? _

_That's right, the dead demi-Saiyan's mind was still hovering, still pondering the deep mystery of the race of Those-With-A-Long-Jargon-Name-Which-Must-Be-Hyphenated-Rather-Like-Voldemort's-Because-We-Have-No-Idea-What-It-Is-In-The-First-Place. Aargh. How obsessive can you get? Sheesh. **(Hits forehead)**_

_Anybody still up for slapping him? **(Counts the number of hands raised)** Right, onward then. **(Starts marching **_**back**_ **determinedly to Gohan)** _

_"Oh, whatever," Gohan muttered, shaking free of the trance he'd fallen into. _**Thud_ as SP face-faults) _**_"I'm just going back to my body now." **(Another **_**thud**_ "Oh, look at that!" he exclaimed, looking down for the first time in ages. **(SP looks at her character warningly)** "They've defeated the Tinkomathen already!" **(Loudest **_**thud** _**yet)** Yep, we missed all of the action _yet_ again. Why? Why does this sort of thing **always** happen to us? WHY? _

_(Aline: Because you stink at writing action scenes when the main character isn't fighting or going to fight in it. you're also lazy and too lazy to admit it.) _

_**(Blinks)** Wow. That… was presented very… factually. Of course, none of it is true, but…_

_(Aline: **(Looks™ at authoress) **SP: **(Sweatdrops)**) _

_"Nice job, guys," Gohan called down to Goten and Trunks, whom did not answer. Remembering for the first time that he was only a mind, Gohan lightly struck his forehead for his absentmindedness **(SP Glares as she tenderly fingers her three bumps)**. Turning, he flew rapidly back to his house and his body, _now_ finding the significance of that information about the snap/crash of the wall around his body. Sheesh, Gohan's just a _little _slow in way of thinking right now, isn't he? Quite. **(Sweatdrops)**_

_Once he was back in his body, a light bulb went off over his brain. "Oh, now I remember! The _bling!aburscheėkcawcaw!muschaskakflingscreeck! _are the worst planet-sharers even seen, and are thus petitioning for their own planet so as to get rid of their reputation and build a better one. Then they get a higher consideration in their local intergalactical trade confederation! Sheesh, to remember that now…" **(Everyone looks™ at him, before SP sighs tiredly and face-faults again. **_**Thud!**)

_"Gohan!" The warrior himself barely responded to being called before his two little monsters pounced on him, bring him to his knees with their force. "Oomph!" _

_"We did it, niikun, we did it!" _

_"You certainly did, otouto," Gohan grunted in response. "Now, Trunks, if you would kindly climb off of my chest so that I may breathe…" _

_"Gohan, you don't need to breathe," the Demon retorted, even as he hopped off. "You're _dead

"Oi! Gohan!"

The dead Son blinked, interrupted in his entertainment of his grandfather Bardock with the tale of the defeat of the Tinkomathen last year. Both males gazed curiously before them at the panting purple messenger, whose garments signified that she was from the Eastern Quadrant, under the fussy East Kaio.

When the purple fiend had caught her breath, Gohan asked, "Yes?"

"Somebody strange just appeared out of nowhere! It's not the normal appearance; he was accompanied by a weird surge of power! Go check it out while I warn everybody else…!"

The violet courier was left the two males all alone as she shot off in the direction she had been going. Both Gohan and Bardock glanced at each other, then dashed off in the direction whence the messenger had come, eager to catch the action.

When Gohan arrived, there was already a good-sized crowed blocking his way. Nevertheless, he pushed his way in; the path became easier when the populace shifted out of his way, though reluctantly; an effort to prevent being bowled over like so many pins. Once Gohan reached the center of the elliptical clearing, he found a boy no older than fifteen years of age grasping a glaive.

"Hello! Can I help you?" Gohan asked cheerfully, hiding the twinge he felt in his soul as he approached the stranger slowly. The boy yelped and dropped the naginata, which immediately flew up and zoomed over to Gohan. The Saiyan caught it deftly and continued smilingly, "Thank you for the return of my glaive. I assume you didn't know it had a name?"

The guest blanched under his dark skin. As he began to apologize profusely, Gohan looked him over. The burned epidermis suggested that the biped humanoid inhabited a planet with much sun, and perhaps much sand, and his light-colored clothes seemed to support that theory. The garbs themselves resembled a clash of Piccolo's clothing and "normal" clothing, or so the term was that Goten called his school clothing.

Indeed, the tan sleeveless overcoat and the equally sleeveless undershirt, white this time, represented the Piccolo side. But the trousers, a dirty-looking white, were styled like slight-flare jeans, and his shoes appeared to be designed for comfort as well as sturdiness. Perhaps it were the small iron spikes coming out of the soles that gave off that affect. We really can't be sure of that, though. We'll tell you when we are. :D

The only thing the newcomer missed in his accoutrements was a turban, but spiky violet hair drove out instead from his head, which was entirely too stout to be human, although his physiology certainly hinted at that. Three green eyes blinked nervously at him over the thin, small nose and the too-wide, tight mouth.

He was tall, too, for his age, the top of his head reaching with ease up to Gohan's nose. (SP: Which is actually NOT easy to do. I'm so envious. **(Pouts)**) Two jewels, one emerald, the other a dark purple, studded his cheeks, and Gohan guessed that they were a symbol of the wearer's status in his society, though what that was, he didn't know.

Nor did he care; now was not the time for that. "Don't worry about such things!" Gohan airily interrupted the stream of strange syllables that he nevertheless could understand, being dead. "It's all good. What I would like to know is," and here he hefted Hageshiijutsu and pointed her at the boy, "what is a living mortal like you doing here in Otherworld, the land of the dead?"

:-:-:-:

(Pause)

(Pause)

(Pause)

Right then. Now that you've digested the information properly, let's move on.

:-:-:-:

The boy, if possible, suddenly looked even more nervous. In a heavily accented voice, which Gohan had noticed before, he stammered, "Th-the land of the dead? But Ginkof, he would never…"

He looked around at everyone surrounding him and gulped. Gohan instantly bade everyone to leave: "Go away, shoo! You're making this guy nervous. Go on!"

Groans, grumbles, and mutterings of "spoilsport" punctuated the departure of the multitude, but Gohan paid it no heed; he focused entirely on the alien boy in front of him. Not even the lingering presence of Bardock sufficiently distracted him. The anxiety of the newcomer seemed to ease somewhat, for he began to relax.

With another reassuring smile, Gohan asked him: "Ginkof? Who's Ginkof?" But the boy shook his head. "Not _who_, but _what…_ Ginkof is the pet of the sire of my sire, with magical powers," he reported, worry glinting in his green eyes once more. "_He_ told me he was sending me to the place I needed to go, in order to obtain the sword that would help my people."

"And what sword is that?" grunted Bardock. "Who're you, anyway? You haven't introduced yourself yet."

Appearing stricken again, the newcomer fell silent again. Gohan slanted his own grandfather an admonishing look before gently encouraging the mortal to speak again.

"I—I am Takir vershof ter Ragth, son of the foremost _yadishar_ (a term Gohan translated loosely into _farmer_) in my country, and I—no, my _people_ are in great need of help. The warlord Magdalen Ordorz showed up so suddenly and killed so many of my people… Ginkof told me of a sword, named Arikeru, which could help…"

"Arikeru, eh?" Gohan mused, an amused glint in his eyes. "I may have heard of it somewhere…"

"Really? Where is it? I must get it now!" Takir pleaded, his solid accent thickening even more. "I seek the location of Arikeru desperately! Ginkof tells me that to get past its guardian will be hard, but I am willing to do anything it takes!"

"Okay, okay." Gohan held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Calm down. I'll give you a fight, but I warn you: your Ginkof probably downplayed the entire situation."

The demi-Saiyan turned away towards Bardock and handed his grandfather his glaive to hold temporarily. A second twinge of his soul sulked at being ignored as Gohan started to limber up in preparation for the spar ahead. By chance he looked up at the shell-shocked youngster before him. His mouth formed a small "o" of innocent curiosity as he straightened. Approaching the other would-be fighter, he snapped his fingers in front of his face. The movement effectively broke the trance, and those uncommonly bright grass-green eyes closed, opened, and looked at Gohan. "Are you all right?"

"Uh, uh," Takir stuttered, stepping back. "Yeah…"

Amused again, Gohan thrust his fists on his hips and tilted his head. "You ready to fight like there's no tomorrow for Arikeru? Here, I'll show you what it's like."

_Ready, Arikeru?_ He asked the sword spirit hovering just outside of his mind's common room. Instantly it flowed into the common room and nodded, composing himself for the coalescence into existence for the first time in months. _Here we go then. _

He concentrated; a boom and flashed followed shortly thereafter, and powerful sword gleamed in Gohan's hand. It had slid out from his palm, slicing through his lifelines and surging through it as if were eager to be gone from its sheath. Yet Gohan did not flinch or gasp in pain, nor did any blood seep from his knuckles. Arikeru itself stayed in such a grip for a brief time only. The next second it leapt from its wielder's hold and started rumbling.

Gohan remembered when it had done the same thing with Gabrielle in making ready for Majin Buu. He smiled sadly at his sword, knowing it was probably one of the last time he would see it. The situation would come true if Takir failed to save his world….

But that was then, in Takir's future. This was now, and the Arabic-modern Japanese-manga star combination still needed to prove that he was worthy. Arikeru itself would decide _that_ issue, not Gohan….

Shaking himself, Gohan returned to Takir, who gawked at the magnificent weapon he came so far for. The smirk found its way back onto Gohan's face, even as he commented, "Yes, that's Arikeru. That will be the sword you win if you get past me. An unlikely event, but I commend you for trying anyway."

He shook his head negatively once more. "Now, if you're ready, we shall began. My own grandfather will referee, if he wishes to," a grunt from the aforementioned person signified his consent, "and he will stop us if either one of us commits a grievous error or if we're too tired. Got that?"

Takir nodded, determination superseding the wonder on his face. Gohan chalked down another mark in the boy's favor, for Arikeru did not take kindly to pusillanimity.

"Then draw your weapon. Good luck to both of us, and may you prove yourself as you wish."

The traditional saying of all guardians of treasure passed his lips without notice to the one who said, as Gohan was busying himself with his fighting stance. He ended up clasping Hageshiijutsu at his side, his legs positioned so as to start charging forward at moment's notice, and his feet light on the ground. He closed his mind to all influences in time to withstand the impressive display Takir put on in drawing his own sword.

The very air shivered and cracked around the strange teenager as he put his hands together and bent his head. His brows contracted together and he uttered a single sharp word:

_"Blasingar!" _

More thunder followed, and a lightning bolt flamed over Gohan's shoulder and beat at Takir's hands. Surprisingly (or not surprisingly), the bolt harmed the eclectic boy not; rather, it shaped itself into an enormous sword, too big, actually, for the figure dwarfed in its midst.

Gohan could tell right away that the sword had power, but Takir was way to small for it, so most of the strength was mislaid. Arikeru was indeed a much better fit for Takir, son of the foremost _yadishar_, and posses power levels far more than Blasingar ever could. Having been with Gohan for so long, it had obtained levels of energy seen before only in the oldest of legendary swords, even though Arikeru itself ranked as one.

Good thing for Takir, eh? (:D)

The bejeweled fighter lowered his weapon with practiced difficulty, meaning he was well accustomed to Blasingar's quirks. Good, Gohan approved. This would be a better match then.

The two fighters were now in their separate formations. They stared at each other with stony onyx eyes and narrowed, hopeful, and resolute jade-green eyes. Silence pervaded the bare field around them; nothing moved except the sparkling sight of Arikeru as it gyrated gently in midair.

Suddenly the sword boomed again. Gohan rushed the stranger at only fifteen percent of his total speed capacity, knowing by the Ragth's ki level that that percentage was a good initial speed. Of course he did not intend to take it easy on his opponent, but he _did_ want to fight Takir at the latter's strongest. He wouldn't be able to achieve that by overpowering him in the first minute.

Thought from then on did not cross the threshold into Gohan's mind. He locked the thinking gears down (SP: How I would _love_ to do that at night…) for the fight, and reacted mechanically to Takir's moves.

As Gohan's charged, Takir quickly held up his sword. Hageshiijutsu landed on nothing but solid ground, however, as Blasingar and its user sped out from below her. Gohan's eyes followed their ascent into the sky, and his hands moved the glaive just in time to catch the tip of the lightning sword on the lower end of Hageshii's staff. Putting pressure on the opposing blade, Gohan brought his glaive around and slashed, but again he attacked open air.

Amusement colored the features of our favorite character for mere seconds, then he back-flipped to avoid getting crippled in the hamstrings. He thrust his naginata down from the air instead, the glittering cutter shimmering ominously on its way down. (SP: All right, so one thought came into his mind. But just one:D)

Once again, Takir avoided it. It was close this time, and Gohan seized the opportunity while he could. He struck faster now, scoring a solid hit on Takir's non-wielding arm. The blow was not enough to disable the limb, but the concentration of the strike was likely to numb the appendage after a while.

Takir put up an admirable effort at ignoring the sensation, but it unnerved him enough to throw his rhythm off. Gohan helped in keeping him this way with his unpredictable serpentine hits, as well as never being where his opponent thought he was.

It began after the last numbing smack to Takir's shoulder. Gohan landed and pivoted quickly on his feet to prevent an attack on his own back. He stilled, though, when he perceived that his opponent had not yet stood up again. A smirk unfurled across Gohan's face, savage with bloodlust; the true fight had just commenced.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Takir heaved himself off of the ground. Gohan tightened his clutch on Hageshii imperceptibly, for those dark green eyes had dulled beyond the point of recognition. Gold inched into those orbs, and a similar dark yellow filtered into the jewels stuck onto his cheeks a scant centimeter below. He straightened his back, Blasingar rumbled lowly, and the air around Gohan started to pressurize, as If the demi-Saiyan was in an air tank and all the air gradually was vacating the container. (SP: **(Winces)** it's bad enough for _me_ at the bottom of a 12-foot swimming pool. Ouch.)

Still smirking, Gohan educed some of his own ki out, but not the amount necessary to ascend to Super Saiyan. A blue aura shone, although it waved in the heavy air, signifying his energy level to all those whom cared. Only Bardock was there to appreciate the full magnitude of the information, and he kept it to himself. (Smart Saiyan, SP notes).

Then it was gone. Takir's eyes were back to normal. The gold was missing from the semiprecious stones adorning his cheeks, and the air depressurized anew. But Gohan did not let these signs fool him. Blasingar still growled threateningly, and now it even glimmered, throwing off flares of light and sparks in the process. Gohan recognized that the power Takir had conjured merely went into the lightning weapon itself. Well, that was all right with him. Hageshii had much more energy stored in her, and had the permission to draw more from him as she needed to.

A blast of hot air later, Gohan discovered Takir glowering defiantly at him, Hageshii locked up against the burnished Blasingar. But the farmer boy matched Gohan for only moments, as the demi-Saiyan drove him down with relative ease. Like before, Takir used his juiced-up speed to escape the sticky situation, but, as Gohan told him, he couldn't last very long.

"Don't get tired, farmer boy," he warned. "You can do this forever, but I can. I am going to wait until you're good and slow, then I'll stomp you flat with Hageshiijutsu. Got that?"

With a roar, Takir released a volley of lightning bolts, as Gohan had hoped. Hageshii rotated swiftly in a circle and beat back all of the bolts, though she _pinged_ whenever a fulguration engaged her. While the discharges were dealt with, there was still the mater of the rapidly closing in Takir and Blasingar duo. Gohan dodged and jabbed the butt of his naginata behind him, only to hear another _ping_. Withdrawing quickly, Gohan ducked again and swept Takir's feet out from under hi. Sparks stung his hands as he jumped and whirled his glaive so quickly that his opponent could not respond.

All too soon, it was over. Takir had just barely powered up, and yet there he was, sitting helpless under the luminous curved gaze of Gohan's soul.

"Yield," commanded a steely-voiced Gohan. He pressed harder on Hageshii when Takir struggled to rise, causing the teenager to freeze over and again. Gulping, Takir coughed up his surrender.

Arikeru boomed again as Gohan smiled at Takir. "Good," he proclaimed, lifting Hageshii from the boy's throat. "You know when to give up. That'll help you with Arikeru." He hauled up a very surprised Takir up onto his feet and patted him _gently_ on the shoulder. The farmer's boy still evinced pain, however, causing Gohan to smile sheepishly.

"Why?" Takir asked. "I lost to you. I will not be handling Arikeru." Sorrow flickered over the foreign youngster's face.

"Yes you will! Arikeru has judged you worthy of wielding it. See? It's bumping you now." Indeed, the sword seemed rather impatient to get Takir's attention. It clamed down once those green eyes shifted, and hung innocently enough in the air next to him. With breathless awe, Takir vershof ter Ragth reached out and placed two fingers on the gleaming blade just below the guard. He leapt back awkwardly, dripping Blasingar when another sharp glint of fire nearly blinded Gohan. The demi-Saiyan did not let the keen twinkle faze him, however: He sensed that Arikeru simply wanted to introduce himself.

Sure enough, when Gohan lowered his arm, the friend he'd gotten used to having in his head for so long had vanished. Smiling slightly, Gohan unslung the empty scabbard he'd been carrying around since Majin Buu. He held it out to Takir, standing patiently until the foreign teenager noticed.

"But—but" he protested, wide-eyed. Suddenly he swayed; Gohan put out a steadying arm for Takir to lean on. Concern coloring his voce, he inquired if Takir was all right.

**Of course not!** boomed Blasingar. **The boy's overwhelmed! Too many things have happened to him at once! And you expect him to _be all right?_**

"My apologies, Lady Blasingar," Gohan told the indignant sword. "Now that Arikeru has joined Takir, what will you do?"

**I am going _back_ to my master,** Blasingar sniffed. **He is still alive, and I have sworn to help him as much as I can. The only reason I was with this_ mortal_**, the scorn was almost awful in that word,** is because** **my master desired me to train him.** **Arikeru will do much better, in my opinion. _He's_ got a lot of patience where I don't. He'll need it with _that_ dunderhead boy. Hmpf! **

"I'm sure he will, Lady Blasingar. Hey! Are you all right?" The last question was directed at Takir whom had stirred again.

"Uhh…but what about you?" the mortal asked abruptly. "Won't you be affected?"

Gohan's eyebrows climbed. No one _ever_ thought about what the guardians of treasure felt. He grinned reassuringly. "I'll be fine. Arikeru and I knew this day would come. We're not too bad." He cut off a protest with a raised hand. "Don't worry; we'll see you again, eventually, if everything goes well. This _is_ the part of Heaven where dwell those people who save their world."

Takir's eyes grew wide. He only had time to croak, "Really?" before he fainted again. Chuckling Gohan caught him again, only half-listening to Blasingar's blistering reproach.

"Hey, Grandfather," Gohan called to the nearby Bardock. "Hold down the fort for me, why don't you? I'm going to find King Kaio and get this guy and Blasingar back to their world."

When Bardock nodded his head, Gohan took off.

:-:-:-:

A/n: AAAAAAAAAAAAARGH! This took FOREVER to write! Bloody semi-writer's block! Grr….

Hmpf. I suppose you all are undecided whether to kill me or hug me? kill me for the first part or hug me for…oh, wait, there's no point in hugging me for the second part. Go ahead then, kill me. (Braces)

Aline: Don't expect me to stop them, SP.

(Growls) Should I have expected that response from you, museling?

Aline: Yes. (Disappears)

Grr. (Puts away Cosmo Laser Beam Cannon) To put it bluntly—

**(Scream in distance)**

(Smiles like the panther that got the canary) Got her. Now my day is much better.

So we didn't get to see much of the Tinkomathen, eh? Well, it _is_ time for Gohan and the others to step down, after all. (Hoods eyes) Now, if only FUNimation had recognized that fact…. GT would enjoy a _much_ better reputation than it does. (Note—SP has been spared from the horrors of GT except for one episode. Muahaha!) Hmpf. And Arikeru is gone! Waaaaaaa! Why did I write something like _that_? Will we ever see it again? And what about those dratted Tinkomathen? Did the Demon Duo truly demolish _all_ of them? Find out next time, on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to a lot of people this time! Indeed, **Salazarfalcon**, **Michelle**, **Chibi-chan**, **amytherat**, **DBZ Chick1**, **Kate**, **Tiara Shin**, and **MarshmellowDragon**, I am forever grateful to you! (Bows) Now review! (Scowls)

Au revoir!

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 12.30.05_


	49. Chapter the Forty Eighth: Adolescence

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-eighth

Disclaimer: What? Akira Toriyama owns Dragonball Z? No way! Now all my dreams are squashed! Waaaaa! (Cries)

A/n: Sorries I've been so long with this. Exams are here… I've taken two out of six now. It's funny; in freshman year I was super nervous about having to take them, but now I'm only minimally nervous. For goodness sake, this year is when grades count the most! I should be _so_ stressed! But I'm not. I'm glad. :)

It's weird, though. I can't seem to write. I had this written already at the beginning of this week, but I couldn't update because I had a review project to work on. (Grumbles about AP US History) And _then_ I had a swim meet to go to, and reviewing for the exams, and well, this came out later than I expected. Apologies again.

So, enjoy! And, if you don't mind, I would really appreciate a review. I've been getting so few lately….

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_"Hey, Grandfather," Gohan called to the nearby Bardock. "Hold down the fort for me, why don't you? I'm going to find King Kaio and get this guy and Blasingar back to their world." _

_When Bardock nodded his head, Gohan took off._

:-:-:-:

**Quite Some Time Later: Thirteen Years after the Cell Games **

"Whoa! Ahhhhhhhh!" Goten sat up in his bed, screaming. It was the middle of the night, which is unusual in itself, because I never write a chapter when it's the middle of the night. It's about time, eh? (Sweatdrops)

"What is it, Goten?" Running footsteps could be heard, and before long, Chichi and Goku were diving into their son's room, ready for danger. Goku even had a slight aura flickering around him, though it faded when he realized there was no danger.

"Are you all right, dear?" Chichi had already hurried to Goten's side and was, even as she spoke, checking to see if he had a fever.

"I'm fine, Mom," Goten said, absently. He shook off his trance, though, when his mother refused to leave him alone, causing the demi-Saiyan to squirm away from her. As he was already near the edge of his bed—

_Whump! _There went the youngest Son again (Ouch. **(Winces in sympathy)**). "Ohhhh," he groaned, rubbing his head. The bump was nothing to him in comparison to the only _slightly _conspicuous dent on the floor; slightly enough to be unnoticed for weeks until Goten slipped on it again. (Sweatdrops)

"Goten!" Chichi then almost succeeded in vaulting over the high bed Goten occupied in the second rush to get to her son. Goku also attempted to reach him, but the arrival of our favorite dead demi-Saiyan forestalled them all.

"Hey, squirt," Gohan greeted his brother as he helped him up. "That was quite the nightmare you were having."

"You know what it's about?" Goten gaped, redness coloring his otherwise pale features. Gohan shook his head, adding, "Nah. I felt the tumult over our link. Since I know it's better to experience the nightmare completely, I didn't come until you woke up."

"It's better to experience the nightmare completely?" Goku asked, scratching his head. (He's not the only one, I bet.)

Gohan looked over at his father. "Yeah. I don't know why." (SP face-faults) "It's got something to do with letting the subconscious figure out a solution to the worries you have during the daytime or something like that. I can't exactly remember what it was exactly."

"Well, I don't want my subconscious to deal with this nightmare," Goten muttered under his breath. Both Goku and Gohan, being the Saiyans they were, heard it, but Chichi didn't. If she had, no doubt she would be demanding an explanation.

As it was—

"Mom! I'm all right! Leave me alone!" Goten tried again to convince his mother that he could do perfectly well without her maternal ministrations, but he was forced to subside when a familiar black Teton panhandle peeked out of her nightgown. (And how could it be there, you ask? Don't. I can't answer it. **(Shrugs helplessly)**)

Finally, Goku and Gohan stepped in. "Mom," Gohan stated firmly, "if Goten doesn't want to talk about his nightmare, or be treated like a baby because he _had_ a nightmare, then he shouldn't be. Why don't you and Dad go back to bed? I'll make sure Goten gets back to bed himself, and then I'll leave for Otherworld myself. Okay? Is everyone agreeable to that?"

It was plain that Chichi desired to stay longer, but with a few tugs of Goku's handy Saiyan strength, she left. As soon as the door closed, Gohan swung to Goten and muttered, "Well. _That_ took long enough."

Goten grinned wearily from his spot next to the bed. Gohan watched as his brother slowly climbed back into his mattress and arranged himself properly, before he himself sat on it. "It's unusual for you to have nightmares, squirt," he told him, tilting his head. "You haven't had one in a long time. Are you worried about something?"

Goten's pause in answering the question was all he needed. "That's why you had it, then. Well, whatever it is that you're worried about, it's not going to turn out as you think it will. Trust me on this."

"You're not going to make me tell you what it was?" Goten blurted, his voice small. Gohan tilted his head to the side again, then straightened it and shook his head.

"No. You already told Mom you didn't want to talk about it. I respect that. I do want to know what it is, but you're old enough to deal with your own problems now. Some advice, though," he warned. "If you keep too many problems to yourself, no one's going to be able to help you."

Goten nodded, then smiled. "Was that thing you said true? About nightmares being the subconscious figuring out a way to deal with the worries we have?"

Gohan shrugged. "I don't know. If it is, then it's just a coincidence." The two brothers shared grins while the authoress smacks her forehead for the cheap trick Gohan pulled on their parents. Sure, it's brotherly and everything, but still…!

Ah well. (Shrugs) Nothing we can do about it. (Snickers)

"Thanks, big bro." Goten suddenly yawned, his weariness overcoming his rude awakening with a vengeance. Gohan smiled again and patted the pillow behind him; almost immediately Goten lay down and drifted off to sleep.

His smile gone, Gohan regarded his brother with a pensive expression. He shifted as Goten turned over and resettled, then flashed into disappearance as he made his way back into Otherworld.

:-:-:-:

**_Gohan?_** The flare of the mind link startled the recipient, whom was in the process of starting yet another research project King Yemma had assigned him. Nevertheless, his mental voice was steady as he replied, _Yeah? _

**_That nightmare I had? Can I talk to you about it?_** Gohan could just imagine how hesitant his brother was. Doubt was in every word of the question, crying full well how difficult it was for Goten to do this.

_Sure. Do you want me to be down there with you? _he asked. Even as he put forth the inquiry, he knew that the answer was going to be in the negative. Still, he awaited the reply, giving Goten the chance to prove him wrong. (SP: Isn't that nice?)

_**Uh, no, thanks. **_

Gohan sighed mentally, but sat back and laid down his paperwork. _All right, I'm ready. Go ahead. _

_**Promise you won't refuse to talk to me. I—I don't really like what I'm going to talk about. **_

Gohan shook his head. Absolutely nothingwas going to make him stop talking to Goten, and his brother knew it. Nonetheless, he promised, and Goten began to tell him, haltingly, what he had dreamed.

_Wow, _Gohan said, when Goten had been silent for longer than normal. _I guess you're growing up._

_**Huh?** _Goten responded eloquently. Gohan tried, and mostly succeeded, to keep his smile out of his mental voice when he expounded.

_You're going through what everyone else does, Goten, at your age. It's normal for you to have those dreams: it's part of the process of puberty. _(SP: O.O Uh-oh. Here we go…) _Trunks will probably have them, if he's not already. I know Vegeta _definitely _has _(SP snickers)

Gohan somehow managed to convey the concept that he had rolled his eyes. Goten awarded him with a watery chuckle. _I don't know about Dad, though. It's not exactly something you can imagine Dad doing, is it? _Goten's rejoining chuckle strengthened, signifying the gradual restoration of the usual heart he possessed.

More seriously, Gohan admitted, _Even I had those dreams, though I never, ever, told anyone about them. And for good reason. First, I was dead. Second, I had you to watch over. And third, I had no idea _what_ the HFIL was going on._

Right then, Gohan could remember the internal struggle that had lasted, oh, about three months before his dad had finally reminded him of the "birds and the bees" story. A scarring experience, he told himself, though that was not true, in all actuality. (SP: O.O Are…are you okay, Gohan? Aline: No. He's a weirdo! **(Flees)**)

_**Really?** _Goten's tone reminded Gohan of when he was younger and much more impressionable, though lately his younger brother was nothing of the sort. Sure, he was slightly gullible, still, but certainly _not_ easily fooled. A perfect mix for the world, Gohan thought, though he did acknowledge he was _slightly_ biased in regards of his brother.

_Really_, he assured him. _I didn't have anyone to go to, either. Well, I had dad, but it's not that easy to tell your parents you're having weird dreams. _

**_Totally,_ **Goten wholeheartedly agreed. **_That's why I came to you. You wouldn't laugh at me, or think I was too young to understand. _**

_Huh,_ Gohan snorted. That_ I have some experience in. The number of times I've been underestimated because of my size and/or age… _He shook his head. _Well, those people know better now, eh? _

Laughter caused Gohan to grin himself, ruefully. When Goten had tapered off, Gohan continued. _It wasn't until three months later that Dad reminded me of the birds and bees story he'd told me in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, only then it was conducted with the "hot dogs and buns." Just horrible. _

_**The birds and bees story?** _Curiosity came alive in the voice invading his mind, with an undercurrent of apprehension.

_Argh, _Gohan sighed. He should have known Goku would have been too innocent to think about telling Goten about puberty. Casting about for a solution, he finally just threw caution into the wind and told his brother, _Get Dad to tell you. It's his job anyway. _

_**But—!**_

_Don't worry, _he hastened to say, _Dad's not going to think you're too young. I was _ten_ when he told it to me, after all. _

…

_If you want me to be there when you ask him, I will. _

_**Thanks! **_

_No problem, squirt. Feel better now? _

_**A lot! **_

_Good. Now, shoo. I have research to do. _

_**What? But you're dead! **_

_Tell me about it, _Gohan huffed. _King Yemma, the guy who's in charge of the check-in station for the dead, is so afraid of what Mom'll do to him when she finds how he's been letting me neglect my academics, he'll do anything. Including violating one of the fundamental rules of Upper Heaven and dumping on me a load of paperwork. It's not fair! _

_**Oh, come on. I know you, big brother. You love it. **_

Gohan laughed. _I suppose. Now, you, what are you doing right now? _

_**Umm… I'm supposed to be doing homework. It's my study hall right now. **_

_Ah… you're "daydreaming", right? _

**_I guess. I don't even know _why_ I do this anymore. I mean, come on! This is pathetic! If it weren't for Sun-Hi and Miwako, I'd be out of here. _**

_Ah, but that's what Mom put you in there for. _

_**I know, I know, but… **_

_Yeah. This is one of the reasons why I'm _thankful_ I'm dead. _

_**Don't rub it in. **_

_Haha! That was exquisite. _

_**Yeah, yeah… Oops, gotta go. Study hall's over. Time for lunch, goody! **_

_Do I detect sarcasm in that tone? _

**_Duh. The school not only does not serve you enough lunch, but the food is _not_ good _at all. _It's one of the reasons Mom packs a lunch for me. _**

_Heheh. I'm not entirely surprised. Nothing quite like home cooking, for sure. _In fact, Gohan was reminded so abruptly of his own hunger that he was surprised for all of a minute. _Hm. Feels like _I'm _hungry too. _

**_Talking about food always does that, doesn't it? It's like a single mention of the word _food _and my mouth starts watering…. _**

_With our metabolic rate, no wonder. _Gohan grinned with Goten over their private (?) joke. (There appears a question mark after the word private because the authoress is not quite sure if the fact that more than two people know _why_ it's because of the metabolic rate, makes it private.)

_**Well, then, I'll see you later, right? **_

_Absopositively. _Gohan mentally saluted his brother, then sealed off his side of the link, before their conversation became any more expansive than it already had.

Looking down at his barely started research, Gohan rolled his eyes and pushed it away. He bundled the different parts of his material together and placed ki magic over it so that it wouldn't be messed up, then turned and jogged off to his favorite eating-place. So much for that. (Wags eyebrows)

:-:-:-:

SP: No.

Aline: No?

SP: No.

Aline: No, what?

SP: I refuse to condone torturing our readers with the description of "The Talk".

Aline: Ah. _Good_.

SP: (Nods agreement)

:-:-:-:

When Goten had finally approached Goku about "The Talk", he came away wide-eyed and overwhelmed. Gohan had to coach his brother through the information (SP: More like scarring experience. **(Snorts)**), and even then Goten had difficulty in snapping back to reality, wandering around school in a daze for approximately two days.

Finally, however, he did come out of it, and while he didn't exactly say _what_ was bothering him, Sun-Hi and Miwako managed to reason it out. The friendship was a bit awkward for close to two weeks, before Sun-Hi finally came up to Goten and demanded that in no uncertain terms was he to _think_ about those sort of things with them.

Heartfelt agreement resolved the unforeseen conflict, and the trio glued itself back together again. Hadrian and Trunks weren't around to offer their sympathy, having entered into high school at the start of term. Yep, you guessed it. Goten, Sun-Hi, and Miwako, were the king and queens of middle school.

Big whoop. Enjoy it while you can, kiddies, because it's not going to last forever. Next year you're going to go down the ranks again….

And suffer. (SP cackles maniacally)

(Calms down suddenly) Right. Moving on.

…I was going to write something, but I forgot what it was. (Aline: **(Face-faults)**) :D Oh well! I'll just doodle with something else then. Now, what that other thing is…. (Aline: **(Glares)**)

Heheh. Fine. I'll get serious here. (Sighs heavily)

Gohan continued to check up on Goten every Thursday, but he could tell that his brother seriously did not need him anymore that frequently. He made sure to tell Goten this before he disappeared, not quite forgetting the first incident.

The youngest demi-Saiyan protested again, but more feebly than last time. The psychic conversation they'd had about Goten's nightmares had reassured him beyond a doubt that even if niisan wasn't there physically, it was not cause to worry. As long as he didn't make Gohan mad enough to cut him off mentally, the adjusted arrangement would work out.

Goten did have a condition for him, though. Sun-Hi and Miwako wanted to meet the brother of their best friend that aforementioned friend always raved on and on about. Skepticism was the name of the game for them, for he was never at the Son House when they were, even at holidays, and Goten wanted to prove to them that his existence was real.

It didn't seem to cross the teenager's mind that Gohan's state of death did not technically count as _existence_, per say. Indeed, the eldest demi-Saiyan did have a state of being, but he wasn't _alive_, was he? As Gohan explained this to Goten with a sigh, his brother didn't appear to be worried.

"You've come down to Earth before in front of other people. You've managed to keep suspicion away," Goten shrugged. "I'm sure you can do it again."

Gohan shook his head. "That's because the people we faced were polite. From your description of your friends, they're hardly going to keep silent when they notice my halo."

"When? What makes you think Sun-chan and Mi-chan will notice that you do have a halo?" Goten countered, crossing his arms.

"What makes you think they _won't_? Humans are more observant than you realize. They may not always think about what they are seeing, or attribute it to the right things, but they do _see_," he cautioned. "I don't want to cause you any unnecessary trouble, and I want to _keep Baba out of my hair_. Okay?"

"Okay," Goten sulked. "But they're going to come over when you're here one time, and you'll have been warned."

"Thanks, bro," he said affectionately. He ruffled the disgruntled Saiyan's hair just as fondly, which only caused his brother's resentment to deepen. Gohan just laughed.

:-:-:-:

A/n: So, how was that? Goten's going through puberty, Goten's going through puberty, Goten's going through puberty! Haha! I wonder why they never mentioned that in the series…? (Being innocent)

Aline: (Rolls eyes)

SP: (Grins) Sigh….

So, Goten's been having weird dreams, huh? Poor guy! Luckily, he had Gohan to reassure and explain things to him. But what if he hadn't? Methinks that'd be a hassle! (Shakes head) To make things worse for our poor demi-Saiyan, he's been given THE TALK! Aahhhh! To spare my readers from the same fate, I refused to put in here, with the rare approval of my muse.

Aline: You bet it's rare. (Sniffs)

SP: Sometimes I wonder _why_ you hang around me. No, don't answer that. I'm not sure I want to know. (Shakes head again) Sun-Hi and Miwako got a little weird around Goten for a while, but things are better! Or are they? Those two girls do want to meet Gohan…. How's that going to work out? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **DBZ Chick1** and for reviewing! I'm so glad…. (Bows)

Viscola!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 01.21.05_


	50. Chapter the Forty Ninth: Meetings

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Forty-ninth

Disclaimers 1 & 2: I own neither Dragonball Z nor the things outlined in Disclaimer Two in Chapter the Twenty-seventh.

A/n: Hey everybody! I know it's only been eight days since I last updated, but I couldn't stand it! It's too long! It tears at my heart to be this long away from you guys!

Aline: Enough with the dramatics, authoress.

SP: (Glares) No. (Turns away before muse can react) Please check my French spelling, too. I don't take French, which is pretty much apparent in this chapter, so if I've made any mistakes, take me aside and hit me over the head with a mallet until I've corrected it. Okay? Will you do that? (Eyes nearby mallet hesitantly)

Aline: (Looks™ at muse)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

"_Okay," Goten sulked. "But they're going to come over when you're here one time, and you'll have been warned." _

"_Thanks, bro," he said affectionately. He ruffled the disgruntled Saiyan's hair just as fondly, which only caused his brother's resentment to deepen. Gohan just laughed. _

:-:-:-:

**More Time Later, Though Still Thirteen Years after the Cell Games**

"Goten, you moron, I told you not to do that to me!"

"Do what?" An innocent Goten questioned. He ducked the hit the irate Miwako aimed at him with ease, adding fuel to the girl's fire.

Sun-Hi watched the proceedings with her usual equanimity, her pinched Korean features displaying her amusement. As of then, she was leaning against her locker, which was across from Miwako's and two to the left of Goten's; an extremely convenient arrangement, to be sure. Supposedly, the trio was preparing to undergo the trek to Goten's house to meet his "brother", though the girls had their suspicions about whether this brother was actually real or imagined, but so vivid to their friend that he seemed real.

Their worries were legitimate; never was the brother around when they were. They had spent enough times in the hospitable company of the dysfunctional Sons to warrant seeing him at least _once_, but nothing of the sort had happened. Goten had told him that Gohan was working on a project that kept him away from the house most days of the week. However, even if that notion had been true, there should have been signs of another person in the house besides the three that currently resided there. There were none.

Indeed, there was a room, an off-limits room, which contained books, a bed, a desk, a mirror, and a closet for clothes, but it didn't look lived in. The clothes that inhabited the closet looked far too small for someone older than Goten (or at least that's what they assumed Gohan was; younger brothers didn't work on projects away from home, did they?). The bed presented the same quandary; it was a double bed, but it was not nearly long enough for even Goten, whom was starting to grow after all.

The books, also, didn't contain anything that Goten's older brother might read. They were all academic… which led to the question: Where were all the books that Gohan read for pleasure? He must have had _some_ of them before he started studying…

When Chichi swept by with treats for them all, demanding that they take them even when Miwako declined, well, there really wasn't that much doubt left about the books (SP: **(Sweatdrops)**). Especially when they remembered that Goten had told them about his mother's obsession for academics…. Right.

Suffice it to say, there was a real possibility that Gohan was imaginary. (SP: pfffft! As if!)

So, they had, as Goten had complained only last chapter, been badgering their only male friend for details (Well, it was mostly Miwako who did all of that…). Contrary to what they thought, Goten held up well underneath the pressure, maintaining despite all of their stratagems that Gohan was real and was capable of causing with him much mischief.

Goten had reluctantly admitted that his brother had been behind the month's absence two years ago (SP: Two years ago? That long? **(Surprised)**). So Miwako had sworn, if she ever met this brother of his, that she would tear him to pieces. Sun-Hi had not said anything, but her black eyes… had _suggested_ something to be feared.

So the two girls were not particularly determined to like Goten's brother before they met him. Sun-Hi especially felt that she was going to remain aloof from him, reserving judgement on him until he proved himself worthy of her regard, _if_ he did so. Miwako, on the other hand, ranted constantly, demonstrating that she was going to be mad at him for some time until such time as she ran out of anger.

(Shakes head) Poor, poor Miwako…

In any case, no, the threesome was not yet out of school. But they were in no hurry; Goten had assured him that Gohan would be there. At this, Sun-Hi had raised her eyebrows, obviously questioning the validity of his statement, while Miwako did the same verbally. Goten had merely smiled at him and shaken his head pityingly. Neither of the girls had liked this action, and this authoress speaks from experience, unfortunately, but what could they do about it? It would mostly likely be _them_ pitying _Goten_ when the dude didn't show up….

Payback time, eh? (Raises eyebrow) Mm-hmm… right. (Snickers)

Miwako had been yelling at Goten because the demi-Saiyan had pounced on her, surprising her, like he did nearly every chance he got. He'd tried to do the same to Sun-Hi once, but after she threatened to cut him into tiny pieces with a _big_ chainsaw, he'd quickly lost interest. (SP: **(Snorts)** It's not as if the chainsaw would _hurt_ him….)

As Goten dodged yet another swipe, Sun-Hi trudged over to Miwako's locker and opened it further. She found the backpack, withdrew the planner and flipped through it, looking for her homework assignments. She blew at her hair in exasperation when she found nothing in it, whereas Sun-Hi's own was scribbled with anything and everything she needed, whether it was school-related or not. Goten's was much the same, only his assignments were almost always crossed out whenever she saw them. But she didn't wonder at his academic genius; with a mother like his, she would be bored in school, too.

She rather found herself wishing, amongst the squawks still emitting from her excitable sister-without-blood, that she _was_ bored in school. Being able to obtain the kind of grades that were so easy for Goten…. She wouldn't need tutoring, for sure.

She shook her head. She hated her tutor, Bragnok-san, with a passion; the only person whom didn't know of this was Bragnok himself. A German-Greek, the man was so stuffy that she could hardly bear it; his accent was so thick naturally, and atrocious in Japanese she couldn't understand him half of the time; he twitched all of the time; and above all of that, Bragnok-san was _ugly_.

The dark hair and huskiness that generally came from the German area of Europe combined in such a way with the lithe agility of the Greeks as to make him look like one of the fantastical ancient Greek monsters. Sun-Hi personally thought he looked like a rather thickset Medusa, only with smoothed-down hair instead of snakes encompassing her scalp. Or a Hydra, dwelling in the waters of Lethe, ready to strike out at anyone who passed.

Sun-Hi hmphed with disapproval and returned to the present. Miwako was no longer chasing Goten, but she was hardly packing for the trip to Goten's house, as well.

"Wako-chan," she called. When the girl had turned to her, she motioned to the locker with her head, exasperation clearly showing on her features. "You haven't packed yet."

"I haven't?" Miwako yelped. She scurried over the locker and began to stuff every one of her books from it into her backpack. Book after book found itself crammed carelessly into the book-bag, until finally it wouldn't hold anymore. Sun-Hi wordlessly took two of the heavier ones, allowing Miwako to close her backpack a little more easily. Goten must have finished his own packing, for it was not long before he slid the Earth Science and the History books out of Sun-Hi's arms. She turned to see that he was indeed ready, his own messenger bag slung cross-wise over his shoulder.

"Almost ready to go, finally?" he teased. Miwako glared at him as she hefted her bag over her shoulder. Goten winced at the heaviness of the bag, but as he'd been doing that each and every day for three years, Miwako ignored him.

"I'm ready, now let's _go_," the tomboy snarled. "I want to get out of here before those _twits_ find me again."

Those "twits", as Miwako so fondly called them, were the popular gang of girls at the middle school. Their favorite victim was not Miwako, but she was certainly high on their "reform" list. The Twits seemed to think that Miwako was an embarrassment to the female population of the middle school with her rebellious attitude, nonconformist style of dress, and refusal to hang out with "normal" girls her age. Obviously, Sun-Hi was not normal, and Goten wasn't even a girl. (SP: Anybody ever feel this way in middle school?)

As a result, the Twits regularly nagged Miwako, never mind that their tactics only served to add fuel to her hatred of them, which caused her to further rebel against them. And as she rebelled more and more, the Twits stepped up their efforts. It was a vicious cycle, one that Sun-Hi was glad she'd not entered, and Goten was angered by.

Still, there was nothing either Sun-Hi or Goten could do, besides going to the teachers, whom were all enamored by the Twits. It didn't help that the leader, Murasani Orino, belonged to one of the richer families in the neighborhood. Even Kinata-san wouldn't lift a finger to help.

Sun-Hi grimaced, Goten nodded. Together they turned and walked out of the school, where a Capsule airplane was waiting patiently to escort them to Mt. Paoz, 439 Mountain Area.

:-:-:-:

"So where is he already?" Miwako shouted grumpily as they descended from the plane. Goten merely smiled mysteriously once more as he set off for the nearby house, forcing the two girls to do the same.

:-:-:-:

Gohan looked up as he sensed the kis of his brother and his friends come nearer. He heard distinctly, "So where is he already?", which he took to be Miwako's exclamation. Shaking his head and chuckling, he returned to his work in kitchen. Goten would lead them to him.

Like two years ago, Gohan wore "civilian" clothes, but he packed Hageshiijutsu with him, as always. She was invisible, though, and would remain such until either Gohan freed her or she herself broke through the spell. Indeed, the glaive was attempting to do so, but as an exercise in chasing away boredom, not particularly because she really desired to. Every time she succeeded, or was about to, Gohan recast the spell on her in a different way to keep her stimulated.

The "civilian" clothes our twenty-four year-old hero models this chapter (SP: (Cackles madly, wringing hands excitedly)) was monochromatic. His dark green trousers not only fitted to his legs but mirrored the color of his ki magic. His shirtsleeves reached down over his knuckles, while the shirt itself vainly strove for his waist. A moss-green vest attained the goal, however, on behalf of the shirt, although it did not manage to cover up the pendant Gohan habitually wore. As usual, Gohan was barefoot, though his boots were outside of the house. As for Gohan's halo, somehow, with ki magic, he had managed to budge it from over his head. Now it occupied a honorary place as a wide band on his left index finger.

The door slammed and what seemed to be a herd of East Quadrant fighters trooped into the living room just outside of the kitchen. Thumps sounded as—presumably—the trio tossed their backpacks willy-nilly, then the herd of East Quadrant rumbled straight toward the kitchen.

Gohan looked up in relatively impassive surprise as first Goten burst through the door, then a fierce-countenanced blue-and-purple haired girl stomped in, followed stoically by a Korean girl dressed in a plaid skirt and wearing a tie. (SP:P to Falcon-chan!)

"Hello," Gohan voiced mildly, blinking blandly at them. Goten beamed at his brother, then smirked at the gobsmacked expressions on the girls' faces. "What's up?" Gohan continued.

"Hey, bro. These are the girls I keep talking about. This is Uramito Miwako—" he pointed at the open-mouthed female on his left. "And this is Shikori Sun-Hi." The girl in question was as surprised as Goten had ever seen her, but she suddenly burst out in French. To her query Gohan smiled, still blandly.

"_Oui, madamesoille_," he replied. Sun-Hi continued in French, which Goten translated for Miwako, whom learned Chinese instead. Apparently Sun-Hi was still suspicious of Gohan, enough to question him in a different language about the things she knew the Son brothers supposedly shared. As Miwako, outraged, pronounced that were _her_ job, Gohan calmly answered the Korean's questions in the same tongue she asked them in. He even abandoned the papers spread out before him to do so, concentrating only on Sun-Hi.

Miwako quickly grew bored with the Inquisition and wandered over to the kitchen table with the paperwork covering almost every millimeter of it. She peeked at one such paper upside down and almost gawked. She did gawk when she lifted the paper and saw another sheet under it, filled with the same insane characters as the first one.

"The papers you're looking at are in ancient Spiritual. You're not going to be able to read them," she heard an amused voice call. Caught, she glanced up quickly, meeting the warm onyx eyes of the speaker. Deliberately, and with much dignity, she laid the sheet of thick paper she held back into its original place and backed away.

Meanwhile, Gohan mentally congratulated himself on a job well done. He'd taken the necessary precaution of laying a ki magic illusion over the galactic journal King Yemma had somehow acquired and sent onto him. The language of the alternate-worldly wanderer would have been impossible to decipher if Gohan hadn't been dead. As it was, he _was_ dead, so he shared the common characteristic of understanding any language.

Such a trait allowed him to withstand Sun-Hi's juggernaut questions without turning a hair; this was one of the many times Gohan seriously thanked the Kaios that he no longer lived (SP: Which is a strange thing to think, is it not? **(Shakes head)**). He was sure the North Kaio was thinking up corny jokes about this to himself right about now.

Instead, Miwako merely gestured to the table and inquired, too casually, "So what is it you're working on then? What's ancient Spiritual? I've never heard of that before."

Gohan lifted his shoulders in answer. "I don't know what ancient Spiritual is. I just named it that so I could call it _something_ other than 'the darn frustrating squiggle language.'"

Miwako had to agree with him as she gazed at the rows upon rows of jagged runes that dazzled the eye. "So, you're translating this stuff?"

Gohan made a face. "You could say that," he said dryly. Goten snickered, earning him a wry sidelong look from his brother. "Needless to say," he continued, "I've not gotten very far."

He sighed. Miwako snorted and crossed the room past Gohan to acquire her favorite brand of cookies. Sun-Hi moved closer and inspected the squiggles on her own, but did nothing to give Gohan any encouragement in his actions. Gohan himself had to smile at her actions; it was not precisely what he himself did, as he was friendlier, but he could remember a certain two-tone-haired ex-psychic he'd become friends with…. Indeed, he could only expect this kind of behavior. To see the cynicism in someone so young was a smite disheartening, however.

(SP: Ha! You yourself were _eighteen_ when you displayed the cynicism yourself, ya know! You're not so old as to proclaim that, you flirt!)

"Now that the initial wary dance is over," Miwako shot him an incredulous look, which Gohan ignored, "how was your day, Goten? Did the Twits find you again?"

Now it was time for Miwako and Sun-Hi to turn unbelieving glances onto Goten, whom only rolled his eyes. "_Yes,_" he growled, striding over to the table and drawing out his seat. "They were as annoying as ever, nattering on and on about how Miwako should be _this_, should be friends with _them_, and insulting Sun-Hi and me to our faces without even blinking. Someone should do something about them, and fast."

"And why aren't _you_ that _someone_? You certainly have enough resources at your disposal to be so." Gohan uplifted his eyebrows as he picked up his pen again, twirling it between those strong fingers. The girls were forced to look on; Miwako glanced at the duo with a cookie in her mouth, Sun-Hi's face was darkened as she tried to keep her thoughts off of her face. So far she was unsuccessful.

"I've tried before, Gohan. I've gone up to them and told them to stop their actions. But arguing with them doesn't work. Murasani-san's father practically threatened me with a lawsuit if I continued to harass his daughter. Apparently she told him that **_I_** was doing the harassing, not the other way around. You know, the typical 'Daddy's little girl' act."

Gohan joined Goten in grimacing, while Miwako gaped at him in outright astonishment. He had _done_ something about it? Why hadn't he ever told her? Glancing at Sun-Hi, she knew instantly that her other friend felt the same.

"Anyway, that was the end of that. I knew that Murasani-san would bring down the teachers on me if I did anything more, so I backed off. I still wish I'd done more, but I didn't want to hurt Miwako, who is currently gaping at me like some kind of goldfish."

Gohan turned and witnessed just what his younger brother described. Chuckling gently, Gohan began to rise. Sun-Hi intercepted him, however, interposing herself between him and her friend protectively. It was Goten she allowed to walk behind her to attempt to snap Miwako out of her trance. Gohan raised his hands defensively, but the movement did nothing to allay the Korean's lingering distrust of him.

"Mi-chan, are you there yet?" Goten clicked his fingers before Miwako's eyes, but she did not move. He clapped loudly next to her ear; her hair undulated in the breeze. He fisted his hands on his hips, frustrated, then acquired a thoughtful look on his face. Before he could do anything, however, Sun-Hi stepped in, finally turning her back on Gohan in favor of Miwako's plight.

Moving in, the girl with the horrible tutor reached up and grasped Miwako by the ear. She pulled then, hard, eliciting a yelp out of Miwako. Sun-Hi released the cartilage just in time to matter-of-factly dodge a clip on the cheek. Goten restrained her and carefully explained that she had fallen into a trance. Only Gohan noticed that his brother had no difficulty in the physical part of his task, though he was just as tall as Miwako. Needless to say, he kept silent.

It was quite the odd sight for Chichi and Eighteen when they walked into the kitchen. Sun-Hi stood aloof to the left of the burdened table, her arms folded over her chest. Miwako futilely endeavored to escape an unperturbed Goten's grip. Gohan leaned back on the counter and watched the proceedings in general with ill-concealed amusement.

Chichi only smiled fondly at them and made her way to the sink, bypassing Gohan as she did so. Gohan spared her a brief smiling glance, which she returned, before he turned toward the door. His smile didn't waver as he nodding to Eighteen, making the former Android wonder if he'd known she was coming. (SP: She _is_ a former android, isn't she? Ah well. I'm always so confused about Juuhachi-chan. **(Shakes head)**)

Eighteen nodded her return salute and pursued Gohan and Goten's mother, finding her at the sink where she had stationed herself. None of the others noticed the appearance.

Gohan could tell that Eighteen was confused. No doubt she was asking Chichi exactly what was going on, for if Gohan was visiting, why hadn't she seen him before now? Judging from the papers scattered hither and thither on the table, he had certainly had the time to do so.

He ignored her. Mom would straighten everything out, then tell him later. He guessed that he would be doing some major visiting tomorrow and perhaps even the day after that. He shrugged internally at this; it was fine with him as long as he could keep an eye on Goten while he was down.

Gohan came up to the surface of his mind just in time to catch Miwako finally calming down. Goten gently let her go, allowing her to rub her arms to get the blood circulation once more. Apparently this sort of thing had happened before, for Miwako did not evince surprise, and neither did Sun-Hi.

Suddenly he felt something touch him in the back; he turned to see that dishes of cookies and tiny brownies had been laid out on the counter behind him. He smiled again at his parent as he took one; nibbling on it, he signaled for Goten to acquire his own.

"Ooh, cookies! Thanks Mom!" though Goten had not seen them come in, he seemed to be better prepared to see his mother and Eighteen than either Miwako or Sun-Hi. The two started violently and whirled around to look at whoever was there. they relaxed when they perceived only Chichi and the mysterious Juuhachi.

"Hi, Son-san, Chestnut-san," Miwako chirped. Though she had already consumed a fair share of the delectable snack, she plucked some more of them from the plate nearest her. (SP: I don't blame her. Yum!)

Meanwhile, (SP: I've been using that word a lot this chapter, haven't I? I'll cut down on it now.) Sun-Hi politely asked if there was any peanut butter in any of the brownies. Eighteen was the one who replied affirmatively. A smile crossed Sun-Hi's face and she eagerly dug into the batch, educing a rare smile to appear on the woman's face.

Eighteen turned to Gohan when he asked, "How's Marron doing at her elementary school? What's the name of it again, Kazawasaru Elementary?"

"Yes," she replied in surprise. "I'm surprised you remember the name." (SP: Duh.)

Gohan grinned. "I may not be around that much, but I do try to keep up to date on things around here. Speaking of keeping up to date, what grade is Marron in?"

"Fifth," Eighteen replied with obvious pride. Gohan could commiserate with her, as he was more proud of Goten in middle school than ha had been of any of his own personal achievements, including destroying Cell. Of course, that's not exactly a glowing recommendation, seeing as Gohan had some trouble getting over that last accomplishment, but you know what I mean. Gosh, isn't Gohan so mature?

(Aline: **(Snorts)**)

Heheh. **(Sweatdrops)**

Right. Moving on. Gohan and Eighteen engaged in conversation about Marron's already impressive leaps and bounds in her academic progress, as well as the adventures she had almost every day with her own band of friends. Gohan currently was laughing about a dry recollection of the raid on Kayou-san's mother's makeup chest only last week. Marron had come home with "her eyelids drooping from the heavy load of eyeshadow on it, too much rouge on her cheeks, and an unhealthy amount of lipstick."

"But she was happy, wasn't she?" Gohan asserted through his chuckles. Eighteen lifted one shoulder, non-committant, giving Gohan his answer.

"Okay! We're going to do homework now! Thank you for the snacks, Son-san and Chestnut-san!" Miwako announced. After bowing, she shot a glare at the protesting Goten, though the half-eaten cookie he'd crammed into his mouth muffled his dissent. Sun-Hi nodded and palmed her last brownie, drifting out of the door calmly. Goten sighed in resignation and followed the tug of his collar in Miwako's hands, so that it seemed as if she was dragging him out of the room. This is a feat we all know is impossible, but the histrionics are appreciated, ne:D

when the last traces of Goten and Miwako were gone, Gohan heaved a sigh. "Well, that's over with," he muttered. He pushed off of the counter, approached the table, and began to clean up the mess there.

"You're not staying for dinner, dear?" Gohan looked back over his shoulder and sighed again. Those puppy dog eyes really did run in the family (SP:P to **Tiara Shin**). Of course, that pan didn't, but it was just as deadly, and hurt more.

"Sure, Mom, I'll stay." Gohan blew out a breath of resignation, but continued to clear saway his research.

"Thank you dear. By the way, I told Eighteen you'd be visiting her and the rest tomorrow. Don't forget, okay?" Chichi eyed her son with a glare; he merely rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mom," he repeated, his back still turned to her. "I won't forget."

Eighteen refrained from snorting when she heard the demi-Saiyan add underneath his breath: "As if I _could_ forget."

:-:-:-:

"So, Goten, how do your friends feel about me?" Gohan asked Goten the next day. Goten looked up from his sculpting an assignment and thought about the question.

"I don't they've yet gotten over the shock that I actually do have a brother, and not an imaginary friend. Even though Mom called you 'dear' throughout the whole dinner—"

"Ick," Gohan commented, making a face. Goten grinned; then, carefully covering his clay with the plastic it'd come in, abandoned the pursuit in favor of his favorite person.

"The thing is, bro," Goten persevered, "you seem too perfect to them. I 'rant' about you all the time, and nothing bad ever pops up. It doesn't help that they've got a bit of a grudge against you—"

"Really? What for?" Gohan inquired. Goten looked at him pointedly; when Gohan still didn't get it, he prompted, "Remember the starvation month two years ago?" When Gohan nearly slapped himself for his absent-mindedness, Goten nodded in agreement.

"Anyway, they'll come around if they see you enough. Trunks is asking for you, by the way. He's wondering where you've gone."

"I'll go over today," Gohan promised. "I heard that there's a martial arts tournament for people between the ages of twelve and twenty in a few months. Are you going to enter?"

"Of course I am!" Goten exclaimed, his tone scolding. Gohan simply smiled and asked, suggestively, "Wanna put some practice in for it?"

Goten stared at him. Slowly a devious smile formed. "Sure," he said, innocently. "Why not? There's no harm in it."

Laughing, the Son brothers raced each other out of the door. However, they weren't done yet. We hear: "Hey, I know. We should go to Capsule for this spar. Trunks should have some fun too."

"Yeah, let's do that," Goten's voice shouted. The authoress and the readers glance at each other, greatly fearing for the domed structure of Capsule.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Finally that's done. It took me some time. (Sweatdrops)

Aline: It _did_ take you long enough.

SP: Shaddup muse. You're not helping.

Aline: Am I meant to? (Snidely)

SP: _Yes._

Aline: Too bad. I refuse.

SP: You've made that clear, _crystal_ clear. (Glares)

Aline: (Sniffs haughtily) I have other things to do than to be abused, so I'm leaving. (Disappears)

SP: Be abused? (Shrieks) That's _my _line! (Chases after muse)

**_So Goten did manage to convince Gohan to show himself after all, eh? I bet he did a lot of nagging! Heh, heh, heh! And yet Sun-Hi and Miwako don't seem to like Gohan! What's up with that? I don't know… It seems Goten's entering a martial arts tournament! He'll win, of course, but will it be interesting? Discover the answer for yourself, next time on _Vigilante Angel**

Thanks to **puff the magic dragon**, **Tiara Shin**, and **DBZ Chick1** for reviewing! (Bows)

_Hasta, _

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 29 Jan, 2006_


	51. Chapter the Fiftieth: Fame

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fiftieth

Disclaimers 1 & 2: Do you think that I'd write fifty chapters of fanfiction if I owned Dragonball Z? No, I didn't think so either. LOL. As for any ideas that are/are similar to other ideas you have seen, see Chapter the Twenty-seventh.

A/n: We have now come to 50 chapters. Goten's not even 14 years old yet! How did it get this long? And this is NOT a question for you, Aline.

Aline: (Curses under breath)

SP: Yeah, yeah, that's what I thought. (Glares) Anyway... ya, fifty. And I haven't got to four hundred reviews yet! (Pouts) I thank the _faithful_ reviewers, nevertheless, for putting their two cents out, but to everyone _else_...

Pffft! (Shakes head) Right. Still, I'm a grateful for the reviews, so if I sound greedy, I'm only pretending. (Shifty look)

Aline: (Sidelong glance)

SP: I saw that! (Menacing)

Aline: You were intended to. (Looks on smugly as SP face-faults)

SP: Ouch. (Rubs head gingerly) THAT HURT! (Glares at muse again) Owie... I'm going to try to write at least one chapter without the comments in _parentheses_ (not brackets), because a certain few reviewers have complained about those. Apparently they like my story enough to read about FORTY NINE CHAPTERS of these "annoying" comments, reviewing all the while to "STOP TALKING IN BRACKETS. You sound retarded." (Takes breath)

Well, dear unnamed reviewers, your wish is my command, but for ONE chapter ONLY. Savvy? (Crosses arms) We'll see how this is received. (Taps foot)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_Laughing, the Son brothers raced each other out of the door. However, they weren't done yet. We hear: "Hey, I know. We should go to Capsule for this spar. Trunks should have some fun too."_

"_Yeah, let's do that," Goten's voice shouted. The authoress and the readers glance at each other, greatly fearing for the domed structure of Capsule._

:-:-:-:

**Five to Six Months Later, 13-14 Years After the Cell Games **(a.k.a. _5-6ML, 13-14YatCG_)

"Hey! Goten! Over here!" A hand waved the teenager (1) over to the owner of the voice. He was standing near the registration stand that Goten had been looking for since he'd come through the entrance gates.

Hadyn smiled slightly at his best friend's friend. Goten returned the smile with one of his own before he went to register. He had no worries about who was here now; if Hadyn was here, then so was Trunks.

It would be interesting after all.

"All Fire contestants please report to Arena Twenty-five for your preliminary matches. All Fire contestants please report to Arena Twenty-five..."

Hadyn slapped Goten carefully on the shoulder. "Apart before we've begun any havoc," he declared wickedly. Goten glanced down at the armband he'd received upon registration, but saw only a Wave patch on blue fabric. He peeked at Hadyn's armband—

Goten nodded quasi-mournfully. "The brand of the Flame dooms us both, my friend," he remarked. "Were it not there, much fun would not we have?"

Hadyn rolled his eyes. "Great, the puny eighth-grader's making up Shakespeare. I gotta get outta here." He waved from a distance, his red armband stark against his pale skin, having already begun walking away as he was speaking.

"Good luck in your prelims!" Goten yelled after him. He laughed when Hadyn shot him a glare over his shoulder, knowing full well that Rochester-san needed it. Hadyn himself would never admit it, though.

Alone now, Goten looked around for something to do before he was called. He had just started for the nearby hot-dog vendor when—

"All Zephyr contestants, please make your way to Arena Twenty-three for your preliminary matches."

—he was thrown to the ground. Immediately he rolled forward and sprang up. Trunks, grinning, caught his foot before it could land.

"Nice," he commented, releasing the foot. "Which element are you?"

Goten expelled a breath. "Water," he said succinctly, offering up the armband for inspection. "Looks like you're Water, too."

The lavender-haired Saiyan nodded, exposing his own cloth wrap. "Think we'll have to fight each other in the prelims?" Goten asked.

Trunks snorted. As they began walking in no particular direction, he declared, "That would be a riot. The hardest fight wouldn't even be a part of the tournament. They'd have to start televising the prelims if that happened."

"Not only the hardest, but the longest," Goten put out. "I think they probably would put time limits on prelims, anyway, so the fight wouldn't even be ended properly. What luck!"

Trunks laughed briefly. "Quite," his only remark became even as—

"Wave fighters, all Wave fighters, Arena Twenty-two is ready for you. Will you please be here in five minutes to begin the preliminaries? I repeat..."

Both Goten and Trunks exchanged glances. Suddenly they were off, speeding in the direction of the Arenas, marked by its middle, in which a colossal spindle sprouted solidly from its paved plateau. Scenery flashed by in the true spirit of Impressionism, blurry as no painting ever painted by Vincent Van Gogh could ever hope to be. Music blared out suddenly at them from their left, but it, too was left behind with only a breath, its tentacle-like strands straining mightily for their ears.

Food, marvelous food, wafted into their nostrils, tempting them to stop, relax, and admire what they had passed so swiftly. Their stomachs did not offer up any chatter, surprisingly, for they had had already been stuffed to the brim only minutes before entry into the tournaments. For Goten, the previous declaration was literal, for he had been munching on the last of his lunch in the plane transporting him here. (2)

And then they were there. They had arrived at the Spindle in a dead heat, their breaths hefting their way out of their mouths with a little more difficulty than before, but not so much as to define the action as "panting." Almost within the blink of an eye, Trunks and Goten had faded into thin air and reappeared at their desired destination (or so it would seem to an observer, had there by chance been one).

The whiff of air they had left behind in their mad dash to the spindle arrived explosively, a miniature sonic boom. Unfortunately, the originators were not there to hear it: They had already moved on to Arena Twenty-two.

Upon entry, a woman obstructed them immediately. She was not a kind- or pleasant-faced person; the Demon Duo's boisterous entry almost instantaneously whimpered and crept along meekly behind her after she gestured imperiously for them to follow.

"State your names and ages over here," she demanded harshly. "The proprietors will direct you from there." She left them facing two blue-shirted persons with clipboards, who indeed informed them of their destination. It was both fortunate and unfortunate that Goten and Trunks, too, were separated, "apart before we've begun any havoc," to quote Hadyn Rochester of only a few minutes ago.

And all of this happened before Gohan arrived.

:-:-:-:

"90 times I've told you not to follow me," Baba shouted at the irreconcilably mischievous Gohan. "_90 times!_ You, boy, make me feel even older than I already am."

Gohan grinned; he was about to make a snappy comeback when Baba herself dismissed him. "Go; it matters not to me what trouble you get into in the Living World. It's not my territory, and by the Kaios I'm glad."

Mock-offended, Gohan placed a long-fingered hand over his heart. "That hurt, Baba," he sulked dramatically. He was about to continue when Baba shot him a look that clearly said, _Don't go there._

"I said go. What more do you want?" Baba seethed. Gohan, taking his cue, saluted the fortune-teller. Even before he'd finished the action, he was standing facing the huge Spindle of East City's famous Circle of Arenas.

"All Earth fighters, your preliminaries will take place in Arena Twenty-four. Earth fighters, Arena Twenty-four please."

Gohan inhaled the sights, the sounds, the smell of _food_, and smiled. This was heaven; even the Otherworld could not compare to it. That was the bad thing about being dead: Nothing was ever as lively as the real thing, the masses of humanity and sub-humanity all congregated for the single purpose of entertainment.

Chuckling at his horrible joke, Gohan stuck his hands into his pockets and began strolling around. "Outsiders" were not allowed to see the preliminaries; Gohan knew Goten was already trapped within the Arenas by virtue of the location of the latter's ki. (3)

"Oh well," he consoled himself. "I can at least try to enjoy myself while I'm here."

Never did he know he would be accosted by a long faded memory.

:-:-:-:

Goten yawned; he'd just come out of his second-to-last preliminary and was utterly bored. It turned out that of each elementary division of fighters were further divided by age group from twelve to twenty. These age groups pitted its members amongst themselves for a spot in the tournament; this meant that nine fighters from each of the elements, ages twelve to twenty, would face each other in the real tournament; thirty-six in all.

This tournament was of course a minor tournament, in which lesser-skilled adults tested themselves against the more proven youngsters. That being said, the adults still were favorites to win the tournament; the bias merely had been steam-rolled out a bit more than in perhaps the World Martial Arts Tournament.

That didn't stop Goten's boredom, however. As he was a year younger than Trunks, the proposed "riot" in the preliminaries would never happen. Goten had already expressed his brief disappointment with a snap of his fingers.

One person, however, had attracted his attention: Takahira Hideki. The boy was strong, beating almost every one of his opponents with a smoothness that was surprising in a human fighter, especially one of his sparse fifteen years.

Goten shrugged. That Hideki was a good two years older than he was; Goten didn't have to worry about him until the real tournament began. Right now, the demi-Saiyan was much more interested in obtaining sorely needed _nourishment_.

So when he received the congratulations of the bitterly disappointed thirteen-year-old recently facing him, Goten only stayed long enough as was polite. The next thing he knew, he was avariciously approaching an Arenas kabuki bar.

Shelling out a rapid "Thanks!" for his food (generously provided free of charge by the tournament for the fighters), Goten raced away to a private place in order to savor his food. Just as he was about to start, a chuckle resounded beside him. As Goten looked around, his eyes lit up.

"Hey, bro! Did you catch my prelim match?" he exclaimed excitedly.

Gohan gazed at him amusedly. "How could I? The prelims are forbidden to outsiders, remember? Even _I_ am not so foolhardy as to break those rules, not when there's such an ugly **onna** prowling the premises for anyone not sporting a blue armband." He nodded to the younger demi-Saiyan's arm. Goten rolled his eyes; having forgotten all about the armband requirement, he had thought Gohan would sneak in somehow to see how Goten handled the _weaklings_.

And weaklings they were, he reflected. Oh, sure, they were all strong in their own right, but, heh, compared to him, they were practically worms scratching the ground feebly for sustenance. (4)

"Humph," Goten disapproved. Gohan merely rolled his eyes; he chuckled benevolently in the next moment as his brother took advantage of the silence to finally wolf down his comestibles. Just as he gulped down the last bite, the professional announcer (PA) heralded the final preliminary contests for each elementary division.

Goten and Gohan traded wearied gazes; the former stood. Gohan rose also and dusted both his own clothes and his brother's. Just for good measure, the dead Son also ruffled the trademark force-resisting spikes, whereupon Goten batted indignantly at him and bolted away.

:-:-:-:

Hadyn twisted up the arm of his last opponent ruthlessly, almost the point of breaking the shoulder. His enemy did not scream, much to his credit, but Trunks was sure it was close to that for him. The human was forced to let go in order to prevent breakage when the fighter, Jie, twisted violently; Hadyn was almost thrown over his shoulder.

Instead, Hadyn pivoted on his foot and swept his foot low down on the ground. Jie jumped and performed a midair split, which Hadyn ducked under and flipped sideways, kicking out with his feet mid-flip. Jie barely avoided the attack and attacked again with a high kick. This time Hadyn withstood the offense, much to the shock of Jie. Hadyn thrust forward with a yell and karate-chopped fiercely. Barely grazing the Mohawk of his opponent, Hadyn knew he was done for.

Indeed, in the next moment, Hadyn found that he was spread-eagled on the firm red mat, the wind knocked straight out of him. Yumichika Jie had struck directly for his unguarded solar plexus and driven him straight into the ground.

Rochester Hadyn, participating in his first tournament, had lost before he'd even gotten to the main arenas.

Distantly, he heard the timer's _ding_, announcing the end of the match. He groaned and let his head fall back onto the mat. He'd disappointed Trunks, humiliated himself, and just screwed the name of his dojo all over the place.

"Great job," he heard a voice say. "It was tough fighting you."

He looked up a long distance to see the scrawny Jie standing over him. Hadyn offered up a weak smile. "You were better."

Jie shook his head, his flopping forelock of bright yellow a sharp contrast to his black hair. "Nah," he disagreed. "You almost got me with that arm twist. I count myself lucky that you lost your guard."

"I did, didn't I?" Hadyn grouched. Jie's hands shot up defensively; the British boy sighed. "Fine, fine," he muttered, accepting the hand Jie stretched out. It was not long before both stepped off of the platform; immediately it was taken over by the weapons martial artists, all of whom would show off their talents individually, instead of fighting each other with them (5).

"What's your dojo?" Jie inquired. Hadyn muttered an answer; Jie's eyebrows shot up. "No wonder you were so tough. That dojo's a really strong one. Is it true that it's Capsule who sponsors it?"

Hadyn cast a strange look at Jie. "No!" he protested. "My friend Trunks occasionally visits my dojo, but his parents don't sponsor it."

"Your friend? Briefs Trunks, _the _Briefs Trunks, is your friend? Liar," Jie challenged. "I'd sooner call my aunt a chimpanzee than believe Briefs Trunks is your friend."

"Oh, really?" Hadyn replied, the amoral gleam returning to his eyes. "Are you willing to make that a dare?"

"Yeah," the other fighter retorted. To his surprise, Hadyn cackled gleefully; with a burst of surprising strength, the brunette grasped his new friend around the biceps and hauled him out of the Wave Arena.

"Oi, Trunks!" Hadyn called out. Beside him, Jie paled; he could actually see the distinctive lavender hair that capped the head of only the most famous fighter under sixteen years of age. Behind him Jie could also perceive the notorious force-rebelling ebon hair of the Briefs' best friend in the entire world—

"Guess who called me a liar?" Hadyn yelled across the arena. He shoved Jie in front of him so quickly that the fighter stumbled. Looking up, Jie froze under the cool violet gaze of Briefs Trunks. "He didn't believe me when I called you my friend," Hadyn explained. The violet eyes lifted to the British transfer in a gesture of exasperation, as if to say _Hello! Of course he didn't! _

Jie found himself fascinated by the play of all-too-real emotions in those eyes. Briefs Trunks' face was much more expressive than the fighter would have expected; his friend, Son Goten, also displayed surprisingly humane qualities. (6) Jie didn't know exactly what he thought Trunks and Goten were like, but he wasn't expecting them to act like this, like—like they were _normal_. Suddenly—

"What's all the ruckus about?"

Jie spun around to face the new intruder. The looming visage of the stranger caused him to crane his neck to peek into the inquisitively friendly face towering over him.

For about the second time that day, Shock rushed up and sucker-punched him in the face. Wasn't this person _the_ Son Gohan who had won the Budokai six years ago? What was this world coming to? How did it become his lucky day to meet so many famous people in one day—much less discover they actually had more than a semblance of humanity behind those well-known features?

Looking wildly around, he spotted Hadyn again, a reassuringly _non_-famous personality. "H-how did you do it? How did you come across all these _celebrities_?" he stammered. Hadyn looked surprised at the query, stopping to ponder his answer as the other three expressed differing emotions at being referred to as "celebrities."

Gohan merely snorted ironically, Trunks scowled, and Goten pointed at himself as if to ask: _Me? A celebrity? _

"I guess I just went to the same school as they did," Hadyn professed, lifting his shoulders in a wry movement.

Jie stared at him dazedly, before he turned and stumbled off. The Demon Quartet blinked in his direction, watching sharply as Jie somehow dodged children running amok, irascible old women with canes, and parents eager to see how their children had performed. (7)

"Well," Gohan remarked when Jie finally vanished from sight. "Your first taste of fame. Not bad."

"How am I a celebrity? I mean, I understand Trunks and even you, niisan, but _me_?" Goten stated incredulously. Trunks adopted an annoyed look; Hadyn rapped the thirteen-year-old upside the head. "Hey!" the victim protested, even as Hadyn snarled:

"Hello? Is anybody in there? Of _course_ you're famous, you bonehead. You're the son of Son Goku, the winner of the Budokai of however many years ago, you're the brother of Son Gohan, the champion of the second-to-last Budokai, _and_ you're pretty powerful yourself as far as fighting's concerned. _Duh_."

"But-but—" Goten stuttered, disbelief coating his face as paint. Gohan silenced him with a hand and a threatening gaze. "Bro, if you're _that_ oblivious, take a look around. See just how many people stare at you, talk about you. After you've observed this fact, resign yourself to the fame. It's going to keep happening," the dead warrior warned.

Goten swallowed audibly; he knew Gohan spoke the truth. And when had Gohan _ever_ led him astray? Gohan contracted his arm, reeling in the hand which seemed to have found its permanent resting-place before Goten's countenance.

"And if you keep competing in tournaments where you finish at the top or near it, you're going to get even more famous," Gohan commented. "I of course am going to avoid all of this foolishness because a) I'm dead; b) I'm too old for most tournaments except the Budokai, which I highly doubt I'm entering again; and c) I'm dead. All of this means that a) I get to look on mirthfully as all _three_ of you are tortured by the burden of adolescence, school, _and_ fame. Hahaha!"

Indeed, the dead warrior laughed as the three males before him gained disgruntled expressions, Trunks only falling back into the funky mood that had attached itself to him ever since the very topic of fame had been brought up.

"All fighters who passed the preliminary level, fighters who passed the preliminary level, the first round is about to begin. Please find Arena 15, Arena 15, for your matches."

"Well, guys, off you go. Hadyn and I will destroy the world without you," Gohan declared cheerfully. Goten adopted a mournful face similar to the one he'd shared with Hadyn before the prelims; Trunks snorted. "Have fun," he counseled them sardonically. "We will." The last part scurried to them over Trunks' shoulder as he dragged a still sad Goten away.

Gohan waved; when Trunks and Goten, too, vanished from even his view, he huffed. "That boy is getting to be more and more like his father every day," he grouched. Hadyn looked at him, his eyes hooded.

"Ya think?" his only asseveration was. Gohan looked down at the brunette staring at him pointedly and glanced quickly away. It was too late however: He burst into laughter, his control finally slipping. Hadyn maintained his straight face by rolling his eyes and beginning to walk, a second before he ceased his movement mid-stride to voice a question.

"Wait a minute, you're dead?"

:-:-:-:

"Come on, Trunks, crush him!" Hadyn screamed hysterically minutes later. "Slam that slugger!" Gohan added, creating a cheering equation meant to scare but really was typical of guys, even one as aged as Gohan. (8)

It was the first round, and it had passed quickly, thanks to the time limit set upon each match. Trunks had found his match to be second, against a Zephyr fighter who clearly was lucky to have passed the prelims. He appeared to be so scared to be fighting in front of thousands of people, Gohan and Hadyn commonly speculated that he had at least two clean pairs of pants waiting for him back in the locker rooms.

They were there in case he needed to change his current ones, those having been heavily soiled due to that very same fright. (9)

As if Trunks had heard them, the son of the former Prince of Vegeta-sei neatly decimated his opponent, knocking him out cold within seconds of launching. He even clapped his hands together in an action as if to say _That's that. _

To some people that was an offensive action, in particular the parents of his opponent and the more extended family members, such as his cousins. One did hear an elderly old man, assumedly a grandfather, roar, "Good for you! You've given him the solid beating he's always needed!"

To other people, stunned by Trunks' superiority in the fight, the final slap of hands was the last straw. They burst into applause and cheers, lending their voices to Gohan and Hadyn's, forming a throng as supportive of a "junior" fighter in the Arenas as if the World Martial Arts Tournament itself were here.

Lastly, to still _other_ people, the swat was reminiscent of six years ago...

Goten breezed by in his fight almost as easily; his opponent was made of sterner stuff than Trunks', though awe did manifest on her face when she heard Goten's name. In fact, she rushed up to him to shake his hand ebulliently and to babble out that she was "honored to be able to fight the greatest (and cutest, in my opinion) rising star of martial arts, even with that Trunks character (who I don't really like) and—"

"May we please begin, miss?" The emcee asked suddenly, the microphone turned carefully away from her face. Goten's adversary looked around in surprise at the business-like woman (notably not the same one tyrannically guarding the Wave entrance), blinked, and gasped an "Oh! Of course! I'm so sorry, I—"

"If you'll step that way then," the announcer stated firmly. The younger girl, blushing, obliged, turning her back resolutely on Goten as she strode firmly to the spot indicated by the "bordering on irritated" emcee. Trunks had by now joined Hadyn and Gohan in the stands, by the simple expedient of hopping the wall that separated the audience from the fighters. It was he that noticed the emcee's actions and pointed them out to the others, and they all interchanged a good laugh.

Almost right away Goten doomed his girl to failure. She was more talented than the pant-wetter to be sure, resisting Goten with much more force than Trunks came up against in his match. But even she bent as a willow does in a ferocious wind, and Goten, too, leapt the wall to join his fellow Saiyans and human soon thereafter.

"Where shall we go from here until the second round?" Goten queried. Gohan shrugged airily, while Hadyn shouted, "Wherever we feel like going!" Trunks laughed; the mirth abruptly dive-bombed as a loud eruption tore the atmosphere—

"Ooooh! I'm so _hungry_! Let's get to a restaurant quickly before I die of starvation!" the lavender-haired teenager whined. Hadyn snorted at his friend's irrepressible appetite, that is before Goten seized Trunks' wrist and began hauling him off the grandstand.

Gohan and Hadyn looked bemusedly after them; the British boy turned to the Japanese and accused, bluntly, as only an European can: "Why aren't you as bleedin' hungry as those two? I would think that as huge as you are, you would be eating a lot more."

Gohan smirked. "I ate already," he declared simply. "When you and Trunks were yelling at the Siamese twins, I slipped away and 'robbed' the Alfresco Restaurant here blind."

"WHAT!" Hadyn bellowed, loudly enough to attract the attention of other people. Gohan looked meaningfully at him, his grin disappearing momentarily. Hadyn shushed, sheepishly looking around at the muttering people around him.

"Are you Son Gohan?"

:-:-:-:

1. _"'Hey! ̀Goten! Over here!' A hand waved the teenager over to the owner of the voice."_ (SP: It's amazing to think this, but Goten really _is_ a teenager, isn't he?)

2. "_For Goten, the previous declaration was literal, for he had been munching on the last of his lunch in the plane transporting him here_." (SP **Sweatdrops**)

3. _"Gohan knew Goten was already trapped within the Arenas by virtue of the location of the latter's ki." _(SP: I'm being really stuffy in my language and grammatical structure right about here, did you notice?)

4. _"...worms scratching the ground feebly for sustenance."_ (SP: My description is rather graphic, isn't it? **(Sweatdrops)**)

5. _"...the weapons martial artists, all of whom would show off their talents individually, instead of fighting each other with them." _(SP: Thank goodness!** (Sweatdrops)**)

6. _"his friend, Son Goten, also displayed surprisingly humane qualities."_ (SP: (**Chuckles)** I would say that there's a double meaning here, wouldn't you agree?)

7. _"Jie somehow dodged children...old women with canes, and parents..."_ (SP: That Jie's got a lot of skill in avoiding things, hasn't he? LOL!)

8. _"as aged as Gohan"_ (SP: **:D**)

9. _"They were there in case he needed to change his current ones, those having been heavily soiled due to that very same fright."_ (SP: Guys. **(Shakes head)**)

:-:-:-:

A/n: Whew! That's finally done! My apologies on taking so long and on leaving on a cliffhanger. Well, maybe not about the cliffhanger— **(Ducks)** Sheesh! I'm only teasing! **(Mutters) **

Ahem! Indeed. How'd you like this chapter? I hope you didn't find it too weird—I myself found it bothersome to put those footnote things in. Maybe I won't do that again (just a hint). I also apologize for not writing the whole tournament thing in one chapter; I tried really hard but other things just intruded, like conversations, the fifteen minutes of fame—

Ja. Well, anyway, we'll hopefully close up the tournament next chapter (but don't hold your breath). I'm trying to finish this as best as I can without really making this longer than it should be (as in over 60 chapters! Brr!), so forgive me if I appear to be cramming things together in one chapter that I wouldn't otherwise. Bear with me!

Now... What's up with the use of all the elements in this tournament? Is it supposed to be a celebration of nature or something? And is Gohan pestering Baba again? It sure looks like it! But what's the "long-faded memory" thing about? Is it another villain? It can't be! It's only been, what, _two_ years since the last one? Hmm... very interesting. Also very interesting is Yumichika Jie's reaction to the Demon Trio. Seems like they're more famous than they thought, eh? It's not really surprising though, either. (Crosses arms)

It also sounds like Gohan has some explaining to do! He's just spilled the secret of his death to Rochester Hadyn! LOL! Baba's going to get on his case again! Poor guy. Of course, Trunks and Goten passed their first rounds easily, Trunks going up against a regular scardy-cat and Goten beating up a girl. What is this world coming to? And last but certainly not least, who the heck said the last line of this chapter? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

For reviewing, my thanks to: **Joou Himeko Dah**, **conlan0414863 **(did I spell that right?), **ExtrmEagle**, **Trunks'ssaiyangirl**, **Dark Armies** (twice), **lpgohanfanatic**, and **Tiara Shin**! (Bows)

_¡Adios!_

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN **

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 03.18.06_

(Happy belated St. Paddy's day!)


	52. Chapter the Fifty First: Request

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fifty-first

Disclaimers 1 & 2: Not own DBZ I; to Chapter the Twenty-seventh this dragon takes you, for to see Disclaimer 2, go there you needs must.

Warning: Chapter length is exorbitant.

A/n: Ja.

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

"_WHAT!" Hadyn bellowed, loudly enough to attract the attention of other people. Gohan looked meaningfully at him, his grin disappearing momentarily. Hadyn shushed, sheepishly looking around at the muttering people around him. _

"_Are you Son Gohan?"_

:-:-:-:

**Same Time **

Gohan swung around to confront that one with the audacity to intrude upon his fun. He nevertheless smiled pleasantly and dipped his head, his hands clasping behind his back.

"I certainly am, young man. You have the advantage of me, for I don't know who you are," he sang. The youth (well, he was younger than Gohan, anyway) seemed taken aback by Gohan's "hostile levity" (1), but he strove to offset the initiative.

"Takahira Hideki," he mumbled, bowing a response jerkily. "At the Budokai six years ago, in the first round, you were the one who defeated Pintar with a single finger," Takahira-san said. He added, uncertainly, when Gohan continued to stare at him, "Right?"

The query snapped the older boy out of his supposed funk; he tilted his head to squint thoughtfully at the cyan sky. "I believe so, Takahira-san," he murmured, his hands sliding habitually into his pockets. "What of it?"

Black eyes tore from the lazy wisps of white to burn holes into the other pair of black eyes; the latter pair's owner had suddenly lunged forward. The comfortable shirt Gohan modeled discovered it was choked tightly with Takahira-san's grasp; the free hand fisted with some indeterminate emotion. Wildness superseded the guarded effect of his jet gaze. His voice was a whine.

"Teach me how to do that. Please, I'm begging you!"

A single step wrench Takahira-san's hand from his shirt. "Now why would I want to do that?"

From the frenzied look in Takahira-san's eyes, Gohan guessed that the possibility of refusal had never occurred to him. smiling slightly, Gohan bowed silently to him and moved away. Hadyn, glancing back at the dazed Takahira-san, wisely kept his thoughts to himself and raced after the demi-Saiyan.

Takahira-san, the lone fifteen-year-old with a mysterious dream, became alone.

:-:-:-:

"Bro, it looks like you crushed the poor guy's soul or something!" Goten exclaimed about receiving his first glimpse of the fighter Takahira Hideki. Indeed, Takahira-san looked like he was suffering dizzy attacks he was so glazed. His trouble with blinking lent to the effect, as did his inattention to his surroundings.

"Ouch!" Hadyn winced as Takahira-san blundered directly into the wall sectioning off the main tournament arena. The fifteen-year0old merely redirected his steps to avoid the wall; suddenly he blinked, swallowed hard. Rage inundated his face, his frame, and Gohan could see, his spirit. Takahira-san straightened his shoulders and strode into the arena for his match, his head hand and eyes glittering.

_Interesting_, Gohan mused. He turned to Goten and said, "It looks like he's back on track, though, whatever that is."

Goten shrugged; as the first battle cries emanated from the arena, the two brothers looked to the source. They exchanged glances once more as Hideki positively began trouncing the hapless Soil girl countering him, showing no mercy.

"Yeah, I think he's back on track," Goten muttered dryly. Gohan smirked, his arms crossing as inwardly he examined the boy's moves carefully. His forehead furrowed as he watched the Saiyan-reminiscent moves of this human…

"And Takahira Hideki advances to the third round! What a battle!" the emcee's voice floated beyond the wall. "We've come to expect nothing else from this talented teenager! A round of applause for his spectacular work!"

The crowd had already broken loose by then into wild applause. Takahira-san, his eyes burning, seemed to acknowledge none of it. He instead stared directly at Gohan, his stance defiant, his air accusing. Gohan himself merely raised an eyebrow and nodded courteously, still pleasant. Takahira-san seemed to become even angrier, but Gohan focused not on him anymore. It was Trunks' turn now.

"Don't be like Takahira-san, Trunks," Gohan advised. "You don't want to take away his fame."

Trunks only made a face at him for even suggesting that he want to. Nevertheless he waved his acknowledgement of the counsel and walked into the ring. His opponent was a macabre-looking gorilla by the name of Masashiro Takato, who had defeated Yumichika Jie will seemingly little difficulty. (of course, the match had consisted of Jie trying to knock down the unmoving Takato until the big fighter backhanded an exhausted Jie.)

Taking a leaf from Takato's book, trunks hardly moved during his match. Instead, boredly, he waited for the gorilla's approach and flicked him away as if he were a gnat. The Zephyr gave credence to his group's name by flaying for several meters, ruffling the grass sharply as he zoomed by. He finally landed at the base of the wall, his trajectory having curved as he "flew."

"Whoa! Briefs Trunks has literally sent Masashiro Takato flying! The match is over before anyone knew it—and he'll be fighting Takahira Hideki in the next round! That's going to be a match to see, ladies and gentlemen! Don't miss it tomorrow morning at eight o' clock sharp!"

Goten huffed, crossing his arms. "and I'm not as talented as the both of them?" he demanded. "I stripped my first round opponent like she was nothing!"

Smiling, Gohan covered Goten's mouth again. "Use this anonymity to your advantage, otouto," he commanded conspiratorially. "It'll become the ultimate surprise when you go up against Trunks."

A roll of black eyes answered him, causing him to chuckle. He removed his hand just in time for Takahira-san to attack him again.

This time it was Takahira-san that found himself on the short end of the stick. It was the fifteen-year-old's shirt that lifted him off the ground, his hand that grasped Gohan's wrist, and his feet that kicked at the air fruitlessly. It was he that looked with wide eyes as Gohan overshadowed him.

"Yes, boy, you fought well. You aren't going to convince me to 'teach' you to 'finger' somebody. First off, it's not a special talent, and second off, I think you're strong enough already for whatever it is you're training for. Now leave me alone, and we'll be good."

Without a second thought, Gohan lowered Takahira-san gently to the ground and turned away. At that moment, Goten was "haplessly" dodging a "crippling" blow the Flame fighter chipped at him. He made as if to punch her, but as she discovered he had actually feinted.

The resulting _thud_ was audible even to the deaf and hard-of-hearing members of the audience. Silence pervaded the stadium, a silence Goten maintained as he bowed to his opponent and hopped to the ground. He noiselessly strolled out of the arena as if nothing extraordinary had happened, which in fact it hadn't. We are talking about a demi-Saiyan here.

"Playing with her, much?" Trunks retorted as Goten gaily swept from the arena. His friend only smirked at him, while Hadyn informed the demi-Saiyan, "Gohan told him to go stealth mode, but Goten apparently didn't like that idea. Good job, too, for it's a bit too late to try to hide your strength when people have already seen it."

"Stealth mode?" laughed Trunks incredulously. "There's no stealth mode for us!"

"Well, it would have been nice if Goten _had _followed my advice," Gohan interjected ruefully. "The looks of surprise on everyone's faces when you and Goten fought would have been priceless."

"Yeah, right," Goten corrected. Trunks rolled his eyes much like Goten had done, adding a pitying shake of the head. "Such immaturity. I'll be glad when you grow up, Gohan." (2)

"Me, grow up? Never," Gohan declared, lifting his nose into the air. Trunks recognized himself in that gesture and immediately retaliated by trying to tackle Gohan. Goten intervened, however, and sharply thwapped the other demi-Saiyan on the crown of his head. Trunks lunged again, at Goten this time, catching and throwing him to the ground before Gohan stepped in.

"Cool it, guys. The plane's here," he ordered, ending the scuffle immediately. Hadyn was already ahead of them, as he was wont to be; Trunks and Goten chased after him, but at a moderate enough pace. Moderate to make it seem as if the fights had actually fatigued them, and not leaving them looking for more as was the case.

_You're going to spar with dad as soon as you get back home, right?_ Gohan asked Goten mentally. He snickered at the _duh_ he received, startling some passerby. The dead man walking gyred and sauntered off into a shadowy aspect of the Circle of Arenas from which he never returned.

:-:-:-:

"Hello folks and welcome to the third round of East City's Circle of Arenas tournament!" the emcee cried. A roar of energy from the crowd greeted these words, permeating the atmosphere and suffusing everyone in the Arenas with it.

For two already energetic demi-Saiyans, this meant that they were bordering on hysteria. For Gohan, it was all in the day of the zombie's existence. (3)

"Cut it out!" he could be heard yelling a few meters away. "You've still got some fighting to do! Bother your opponents with that energy of yours, not vendors!"

"But Gohan, we're still hungry!" one of the two demons confronted him. Gohan simply roared, "So am I! You don't see me jumping all over the place!"

As the two demi-Saiyans burst into peals of laughter, Gohan rolled his eyes. Okay, so maybe being a guardian angel was not all it's cracked up to be, he thought sourly to himself. This was definitely NOT a benefit. He crossed his arms and glared at the two monsters rolling around in the floor.

When they refused to cease their obscene guffaws, Gohan huffed a breath and stalked off. There were few times that Gohan was so exasperated with the world, indeed, when he was vexed at all, that it is worth following him, right?

Well, not exactly. If we follow him we won't get to the see any of the fighting, which starts...

"Will Son Goten and Kenazukara Daisuke please enter the ring for the third round's first match?"

Goten snapped to instantly, shook Trunks, and searched for Gohan. His ki, a little more ethereal than other kis, he found at the arena nearby to Takahira-san's. rolling his eyes at the obduracy of certain peoples, Goten sprang from the ground and hastened into the arena, where Daisuke was waiting.

"Hello! Sorry I'm late," he said cheerfully. Daisuke cracked a small painful smile in return, as if he was so nervous, had so much invested in this tournament that he couldn't afford to lose. The fighters bowed to each other, and the emcee began the match.

Daisuke knew he was gone from his first punch. Still, he struggled valiantly against the powerhouse, though panic burned his belly and distracted him. He attempted moves that otherwise he wouldn't have, moves that he would smack himself for tomorrow. His own mentor would throw him across the dojo for failing to get to the fourth round quarterfinals. But right now, the panic crept onto him stealthily...

WHAM! Daisuke collided with Goten's first heavily. To save his neck from breaking, the boy was forced to gyrate wildly. Even so, he landed on the mat bodily. Dizzily, he rolled instinctively as he heard Goten coming, but he spun in the wrong direction. It was through even worse disorientation that Daisuke swiped grass out of his nose and face; the realization that he'd just lost dawned on him just as the emcee announced it to the world.

"Kenazukara Daisuke has just rolled out of bounds! Son Goten wins!"

Daisuke lay where he was, stunned. For the first time in eleven years, a fighter from the Mateoji Dojo had failed to advance to the quarterfinals of the Circle of Arenas Tournament. The fact that his brother was co-owner of the dojo only added further dread to his already mounting anxiety. His stomach began to hurt; he almost didn't notice the shadow offering him its cool shade until its owner bent down to help him up.

"Come on Kenazukara-san, let's get you up off of the grass."

:-:-:-:

Gohan had, by the end of Goten's match, considerably calmed down from his earlier exasperated state. It had almost faded away by the time Goten went over to help up Daisuke, indeed, enough for him to tolerate annoyances with his usual good humor.

Speaking of which—

"Why won't you take me on, Son-sensei?" Takahira-san's by now familiar voice called. Gohan nodded a greeting to the other boy, commenting only on the title the other martial artist had decided to grant him.

"You're going to be teaching me one day," Takahira-san said, that familiar glint in his eye. Shrugging casually, he continued, "Might as well start now."

Gohan chuckled and shook his head. "I might end up teaching you something altogether different from what you want," he pointed out. The last of his exasperation disappeared as he began to actually consider that prospect Takahira-san offered. It'd be an amusement, something to keep him from being bored, certainly.

"As long as I learn what I need, I'm good," Takahira-san countered fiercely. Gohan raised his eyebrows, smiling almost skeptically and clearly humoring him. Takahira-san set his jaw and whirled to go into the ring, knowing his match against the pretty boy Briefs Trunks was next.

He scoffed to himself; Briefs was going to be an easy fight. Those good looks weren't good for anything but the camera. He himself preferred to work on his skills, whether or not a camera was hovering around him. it was something his mother had taught him—

His mother. Takahira-san drew in a deep breath. His mom was the reason he'd trained so hard. He was going to repay that, that Cro-Magnon's uncle of a father that he had. He'd do it, one day. As soon as he learned that one finger thing, he was going to return to Hokuiro and take Nobuo down. He swore it to himself as he'd sworn it ever since he'd seen Son-sensei at that Budokai.

"Takahira Hideki and Briefs Trunks into the ring, please, Takahira and Briefs…"

Without a second look at the dubious Gohan, Takahira-san strode in to meet Trunks, who narrowed his eyes at him. Takahira-san sneered back, his arms crossing arrogantly as he looked the fourteen-year-old up and down. Trunks rolled his eyes at the performance (which was intended to intimidate him, he knew).

Instead the Capsule heir ignored it, turning his attention to Gohan giving him a peace sign. With a smile of relief, Trunks flashed his own "V" in return, disregarding the frown that passed over Takahira-san's visage.

"And now, ladies and gents, get ready for your undoubtedly exciting third round match, Briefs versus Takahira!"

The shouts of the audience members redirected the gaze of the rivals. As one they glanced up; Takahira maintained his dark expression while Trunks characteristically scowled. The announcer preened for a while more, whipping the crowd into a frenzy with carefully chosen words while the fighters shifted impatiently. Finally—

"If the fighters are ready, they may begin!"

Immediately Trunks danced away from the lunge Takahira put up: the demi-Saiyan fended off the initiative with a pivot on his heels and a backwards side-kick that snapped Takahira's head back. While the older fighter recovered, Trunks circled to his right and pounced when Takahira was just about to discover him again.

Takahira went down—but not for long. He somersaulted forward and launched himself back up quickly before Trunks struck again. The two met in a harsh collision of strength; seconds later the two were locked in a forearm battle. It was so fierce that they hardly seemed to be moving. (4)

"So, pretty boy, you're actually going to risk those looks and give me a real fight?" Takahira grunted through his teeth. Trunks effortlessly held the other boy down, though he made it appear as if it took more strength. Because of this, the demi-Saiyan responded in kind to the challenge Takahira set forth: "I don't care about my looks. Is it _you_ that'll actually make me expend some energy to beat you?"

With a yell, Takahira forced Trunks away. He charged after him, but Trunks let him go by and jammed an elbow into the human's back. Quickly he turned and kneed the boy into the stomach, kicking him high in the air. Takahira recovered miraculously in midair and changed his position so that he would be able to smash Trunks' head in when he came back down—had Trunks been in the same spot he had occupied previously.

Instead Takahira got attacked from the side very quickly upon landing sure-footedly on two feet. Trunks bowled him over and then used his own momentum to dodge a counterattack. Second later they engaged in other lock, this time with their arms and their legs.

"Don't care about your looks, huh? Don't mind if I mess them up!" Takahira growled. Trunks merely stepped out of the leg sweep the older male attempted, then answered the bravado calmly, even dangerously.

"As if you could get anywhere near my face," he smirked. He heaved, taunted. "Come and get me if you can!"

Freed from the second lock, Takahira stepped back into a defensive stance. Trunks smirked at him from across the arena, also in a stance, but one unlike Takahira had ever seen before. Takahira could also see that the younger boy was seriously enjoying himself, enjoying the futile efforts Takahira set against him. Suddenly he transformed into the hulking Cro-Magnon that was Takahira Nobuo, leering sadistically at him as he tried to protect his mother, one of the few times he did.

Hatred coursing through his soul, Takahira attacked.

:-:-:-:

"Nicely done, Trunks."

"Thanks, Gohan. He kind of surprised me there. I didn't know he could be that fast."

"Yes, it was impressive, wasn't it?"

"Oi, Trunks! Bloody good job there, mate!"

"What Hadyn said!"

"Thanks, guys!"

"Shh, he's woken up."

"Huh. Wanna go find some grub, guys? I'm hungry after that last match."

"You're hungry _again_? When aren't you ever _not_ hungry?"

"Come on Trunks!"

Takahira let his eyes snap open as he heard the running footsteps recede in the distance. He regretted the action when he found Gohan's face staring down at him. He shut his eyes again and turned his face away, but Gohan wasn't so easily put off.

"That's some hatred you're carrying around there," he calmly informed the prone figure outside of the main arena. "I suggest that you get rid of it before it consumes you."

"My hatred is what keeps me going," Takahira snarled, his gaze intent once more on the figure above him.

Gohan considered Takahira for a long moment. Finally he answered, "That's sad." He started to turn away, but as a thought occurred to him, he paused. "Whatever your hatred is for," he remarked, "I think you'll find that once it's gone, you'll feel lost. When that happens, come find me. I'll set you straight."

Before Takahira could demand exactly what Gohan meant, the demi-Saiyan was gone.

:-:-:-:

"It is now the fourth round, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed yourselves during that blazing third round! Son Goten advanced easily past Kenazukara Daisuke to face Briefs Trunks who defeated Takahira Hideki in a brilliant move. Monanji Yoshiro worked hard to beat Summers Mai; he now pairs off with Daīto Akemi, the winner against Fujio Mariko.

"Sakido Umeko, our oldest contestant at twenty years old, went straight to the finals where she awaits the winner of the semifinals. She's got a while to wait since the finals will be held tomorrow. Don't miss them at nine thirty a.m., all right? Are we all going to be here at nine thirty on the dot tomorrow morning?"

Affirmative sounds arose from the audience, as well as shouts of impatience. The emcee chuckled patronizingly at these shouts, but he was noticeably hasty in announcing the call of the first two fighters to the ring.

"Monanji Yoshiro and Daīto Akemi, you're up!"

Half an hour later, Daīto-chan stood shakily from her fight, wiping sweat from her forehead. She gratefully accepted the water bottle her trainer held out for her; she also received his help in hobbling out of the ring. The emcee had commented earlier on her ankle trouble: Daīto-chan had sprained the joint during her second-round match. With plenty of tape, however, she was moving well enough.

But now it was time for the two hell-fiends of the Saiyan race to share the limelight, as it were. Heaven help us all, for Son Goten and Briefs Trunks, the superlative best friends and ultimate arch-rivals, were about to face off. (5)

:-:-:-:

"Ready, Goten?" Trunks looked over his shoulder to say to his friend. Goten merely grinned, his eyes glinting with anticipation. "What else would I be?" he drawled in answer, flawlessly imitating his friend's habitual arrogance. Trunks' smirk only increased in answer, demonstrating that the Saiyan strength was already overtaking him.

"Let's do this then," he crowed, stumping into the arena with Goten close on his heels. They bowed to the emcee, then to each other. Their eyes locked and grappled for control, while the world around them went still.

"Begin!"

It was Trunks who landed the first hit in the form of an unexpected somersault kick. Goten's head snapped back in rather a nasty crunch, making all who didn't know Saiyan strength gasp (which meant everyone in the audience gasped).

But Goten surprised "everyone" but turning the snap somehow into a sideways vertical kick, sending Trunks staggering back several pairs of tiles. Goten followed up his attack with a flying jump kick, but Trunks fended it off with a forearm and punched Goten in the guts with the other hand.

Th Son fell to the tiles on his back with the force of the Briefs' blow. He rectified the situation by kicking up with both of his feet, thrusting Trunks away from him and grabbing time to stand up properly.

The two titans of juvenile martial arts soon engaged again in a flurry of punches neither the emcee nor the audience could see. One moment the fighters had rushed each other, the next Goten sprang away with blood trickling out of his mouth. Trunks' own face looked as if it was about to acquire some livid colors in the near future.

Notwithstanding their respective conditions, the fight soon heated up again. This time Trunks was evading Goten again, scooting out of the way of some hit or other and scoring light ones of his own, enough to be annoying.

"Come on Trunks, stop dancing around and fight me like a Saiyan!" Goten panted. Trunks merely smirked and moved out of the way of yet another swipe, but as he was turning back—

"Urf!"

"Ha! I gotcha now!" Goten jumped on the opportunity as any good fighter should. Trunks attempted to kick him away, but Goten foresaw the movement and countered it by catching Trunks' leg and pushing down on it.

"Arggh!" A herculean push landed Trunks on the very outside of the rink; Goten pursued the chance and attempted to finish the job—

"Son Goten has punched Briefs Trunks out of the arena! Son Goten wins the match!"

:-:-:-:

After the adrenaline-high fight with Trunks, it was both an anti-climax and a relief for Goten to fight the injured Daīto-chan. It was much simpler for Goten to foresee attacks coming at him, a blessing after Trunks' hard rushes and Vegeta-trained punches. It was a little harder for him to restrain himself during attacks, but Goten was finally tiring, and Daīto-chan seemed to have enough difficulty opposing him anyway.

At last Daīto-chan could take no more: Goten pushed her over easily. She lay where she was, panting heavily, painfully through her nose, and remained so throughout the entire count to ten.

"Son Goten is has now advanced to the final round to face off with Sakido Umeko!"

:-:-:-:

(1) _"The youth (well, he was younger than Gohan, anyway) seemed taken aback by Gohan's 'hostile levity'"_ (SP: As F. Scott Fitzgerald puts it in The Great Gatsby, page five.)

(2) _"Trunks rolled his eyes much like Goten had done, adding a pitying shake of the head. 'Such immaturity. I'll be glad when you grow up, Gohan.'"_ (SP: And since when did _you_ become so grown up yourself, hmm? **(Stern look)**)

(3) _"...all in the day of the zombie's existence."_ (SP: Seeing as he's dead after all)

(4) _"...seconds later the two were locked in a forearm battle. It was so fierce that they hardly seemed to be moving." _(SP: Of course, Trunks is working at a set level of power in the tournament far below his real strength, which accounts for the "trouble" with Takahira. Huh.)

(5)_ "Heaven help us all, for Son Goten and Briefs Trunks, the superlative best friends and ultimate arch-rivals, were about to face off."_ (SP: Ignoring of course that Heaven equals Otherworld and Otherworld has no intention of intervening in such an entertaining affair. **(Sweatdrops)**)

:-:-:-:

A/n: You can pretty much guess what happens to Sakido-chan. Goten'll be fresh then, too, so I'll not bore you with the inconsequential details. (Flaps hand carelessly)

Right, then! That's finally done! I've managed to achieve the beginning and consummation of a tournament in only three chapters! (Sweatdrops) I've managed my space better this time around, I'd say. LOL!

Finally this is up! I had it done long ago, but since I updated **Kakkhan** **II**, I didn't want to take too much attention away from that update to this. VA _is_ a bit more popular, LOL. Ah well! (Shrugs) It matters not. What matters is that this is finally finished. I've been feeling guilty about just hanging around for the past few days and not updating. (Hides) I've only been out of school for two weeks! (Cringes)

Hmm...

So what's next for our favorite demi-Saiyans? I know it's NOT going to be another villain. I've gotten tired of those (Aline: How could you? You haven't written about them in FOREVER). (Sweatdrops) Ja. Instead, I think I'll talk about the mundane but all-consuming things that life has to offer.

Aline: Such as what?

SP: School.

Aline: Now _that_ is something you should be tired of.

SP: I am. (Deadpan)

Aline: _Why_ are you writing about it, then?

SP: (Sighs) It's all part of the job. (Under breath) Including deal with petulant, sarcastic, uncooperative, sadistic muses.

Aline: (Sharply) What was that?

SP: I said, "It's all part of the job." Honestly, Aline, you need to get your ears cleaned. (Starts sliding away)

Aline: Get back here, authoress!

SP: (Changes into panther and lopes away)

Aline: (Pursues)

(Readers are left behind blinking at this energetic display) Speaking of readers, thanks to **Sun Knight**, **Destruction-coming-your-way** (nice name), **Andrea**, **Gohan'slittlebro47** (x9), **Tiara Shin**, **Extrm Eagle**, **Joou Himeko Dah**, and **lpgohanfanatic** for reviewing! See ya later!

Ta-ta!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 06.28.06_


	53. Chapter the Fifty Second: Acceptance

**Vigilante Angel:** Chapter the Fifty-second

Disclaimer: "Does TheShadowPanther own Dragonball Z?" (Yes!) "Buzz! Wrong answer! Try again!"

A/n: Wow. It's been some time. (Ducks a tomato) I know how corny I sound, all right?! Sheesh!

Aline: Just get on with it.

You're the one that wasn't there for me, you idiot!!

Aline: ...Did you just call me an idiot?

Ye-es...Ack! (Runs away as muse—er—"borrows" PGHMGD _Note: PGHMGD is really, really, _really_ short for SP's "Psycho Girl's Homicidally Maniacal Glaive of Doom"_)

Aline: We have a double chapter update for you today, since SP had two chapters handy and was feeling a mite guilty... (Snickers) In any case, I am advised to warn you about the next chapter: the writing style sort of changes midway through the chapter, since SP was writing that chapter when I suddenly took my _very_ relaxing vacation...!

SP: (From afar) It's all your fault you know!

Aline: (Glares) Ahem! SO if you notice that the second half of VA 53 is a mite more serious than the first half, you'll know why. And now, for this muse's revenge upon a certain authoress... Enjoy the chaps and review them, or else. (Chases SP, who's long gone by this time)

:-:-:-:

Last time—

_At last Daīto-chan could take no more: Goten pushed her over easily. She lay where she was, panting heavily, painfully through her nose, and remained so throughout the entire count to ten. _

_"Son Goten is has now advanced to the final round to face off with Sakido Umeko!" _

:-:-:-:

**Some Time Later, Fourteen Years after the Cell Games**

After winning the East City's Center of Arenas Tournament, life for Goten was surprisingly peaceful. It was supposedly the long distance from _any_ city to Goten's house in 439 Mountain Area that deterred almost all reporters.

There was one, but he was so exhausted that he not only did not get the interview with the "rising star in martial arts" that he wanted, he slept most of his time away from his office off. During the little time he was awake, he met the star's brother, who was pleasant if firm and was entirely too successful in evading questions about himself.

After the reporter left again, the time went by uneventfully. Goten's fourteen birthday came and went. The proud fourteen-year-old finally joined the ranks of the high-schoolers (1) including Trunks and Hadyn, towing Miwako and Sun-Hi in tow. A transfer student named Yumichika Jie was wary of the entire gang, almost unable to look past the celebrity status of two of its members. Finally Hadyn and Sun-Hi cornered him; the next day found him a mite more forthcoming than previously.

So the Gang expanded, taking in two more people as honorary members before reaching its peak for that year. The first few months were hard for all of the new freshmen as they tried to adjust to the bigger school and unfamiliar faces.

By December, however, Goten was greeting everyone with his cheerful demeanor while his classmates looked with jealousy upon his perfectly perfect grades. Miwako became bossier than ever, while Sun-Hi remained the same. The exception to this was that she surprised everyone by joining the archery club.

Trunks, the sophomore, gathered ever more of a fan club. It had started behind his back, the club, while in freshman year, but by April of that same year, it had grown so much that Trunks had to run to get anyplace or he'd get mobbed within seconds. Hadyn would often joke that Trunks didn't need PE what with all the exercise Trunks received just going to class.

This year Trunks didn't have the same problem, for there were more juicy boys to share in on the fun. Sadly, this category did not include Goten (2), though the demi-Saiyan himself did not see it that way.

Hadyn had, over the summer, grown. He now could offer Trunks shade whenever they stood side by side, not that he ever did. The British transfer preferred to slouch that he wouldn't seem as tall; this tactic would only work so long, however. Soon Trunks would begin to encourage his best "mate" to walk straighter so that he wouldn't complain of back, neck, and shoulder pains so often.

Jie had not changed his hairstyle or its contrasting color scheme. What he had changed was his attitude towards other people. He wasn't as welcoming or as pleasant as at the Circle of Arenas Tournament towards Hadyn, but was a bit more sullen and laconic. This mood swing resulted from the resentment spawned from his mother's remarriage and subsequent relocation. Only Sun-Hi did not tire of his constant rants about his stepfather, who had made him leave everything he'd ever known, including his dog Makuyo, back in Masdenwood.

One day Miwako became so fed up with Jie's family rant that she told him to "shut up or leave" rather explosively, it might be added. Jie's silence boded ill for the other girl, but the rebel didn't take notice as she glared at him. Abruptly getting up, the moody teenager stomped away, his fists clenching.

Meanwhile Gohan himself was busy. Events such as visiting Goten, catching up occasionally with Gabrielle, shaking off Jun, talking to Osi and Ron, completing his research, and sparring with Bardock consumed large amounts of his time. It was a wonder the dead warrior found more time to watch over Takahira Hideki from several months ago. But time he found, for he had meant what had said at the tournament. So far Takahira hadn't started to search for him yet, but Gohan knew it wouldn't be long.

As the demi-Saiyan respected the other boy's privacy, Gohan didn't check on him when Takahira went inside a building, particularly his home. But outside, when he was all alone—

A look of utter despair would pervade his usually flint-hard face. He would envision such a bleak future for himself, and it wrenched Goten's heart (could he call it a heart, since he was dead?) to see such raw emotions in one as young and strong as Takahira. The worst part for Gohan was that he did not know what caused him to feel this way.

So Gohan waited. He waited and looked for him when he could, ready for the time when dark-haired Takahira-san would realize he was losing himself already. He waited for the day Takahira would call him, and he would be there.

Osi and Ron, when they caught him at it, shook their heads. They told him that it was not his duty to care for someone he was not the guardian angel of. Gohan argued that obviously Takahira's angel did not exist or was slacking on the job. The demi-Saiyan was betting the answer was the former, for what entity would leave Takahira so bleak and forlorn?

Now, Gohan was sensible: He knew that there were millions of people with similar plights to Takahira-san's. But Gohan had learned the hard way that if one doesn't help the people one is able to help, not only would one regret it, but also the people themselves would be worse off than presently. This lesson had been pounded into him all of his life until it was as natural to him as breathing.

After that argument, what could the older Osi siblings say? Jun certainly did not disapprove, but the youngster wisely held his tongue on the subject. It was clear what he thought anyway by his actions.

When Baba heard of Gohan's actions, all she did was purse her lips and _harrumph_. She also said nothing, just zoomed away on her flying crystal ball.

The Grand Kaio himself strolled by not an hour later, the diminutive Baba shifting furtively in tow. He glanced the nonchalant Gohan up and down, scrutinizing him, then nodded. "Ef yer plannin' te 'elp summin oter dahn yer assihgn'd pahzzin', ye bes' get dat pahzzin's pahmizzen ferst," he remarked, his sunglasses showing Gohan's reflection to him. "Et'll save elotta pepple elotta hahzzle."

As difficult as the Grand Kaio's thickened accent was to comprehend, Gohan understood his superior's message. He'd have to ask Goten if he could, firstly, and ask without telling him the basic reasons. A tough job to be sure, since Goten no longer accepted things without question. Gohan refused to give up on the matter before he'd started, for even if he failed, he'd at least have done something.

The next visit to Goten was next week; hopefully that would be enough time to think up a plan of attack.

It wasn't. Nor did Gohan even get the chance to begin, for Goten, bored, had pounced on him as soon as he'd appeared. So Gohan was put off that week, and the week after that, when the Sons went picnicking and the dead warrior didn't feel like shattering the mood. Before he knew it, a month had gone by since his initial determination, and he still hadn't done anything.

:-:-:-:

_Gohan! GOHAN! _Gohan spurted out his daily glass of his favorite juice all over the annoying Jun. The orange fighter blinked, liquid dripping down his face, then grinned, shouting "Do that again!"

Gohan glared at the brat even as he answered the hasty summons. _What?_

_Get down here! We've got a serious problem on our hands! _Goten informed him. The last three words were barely communicated before Gohan flashed to earth, wresting himself from Jun's grasp in the process.

"What's the problem?" Gohan immediately interrogated Goten. The live demi-Saiyan jerked his head; Gohan followed the indication and saw, of all people, Takahira Hideki. But the youngster sitting in side profile to him was not the same person Gohan had met at the Tournament.

The lively fire that had so characterized him had burnt out, leaving a hollow desolation amongst its ashes in his eyes. Every pore in his body bespoke this emotion: Gohan was forcibly reminded of the starvation incident several years back, only less drastic (as it is with any comparison of a human to a Saiyan).

So it had come to this. Knowing that his prediction from the Tournament had proven itself, Gohan regarded the boy with resignation.

"Well, Takahira-san, you seem to be poorer in spirit since the last I saw you," he remarked, strolling over to him. "Has your hatred finally deserted you?" he inquired.

Apparently Takahira-san had not known he was there, for he yelped and lunged into his fighting stance before he controlled himself.

"S-son-sensei..." Takahira-san trailed off. He looked at Gohan for the first time since the tournament, and looked hard. Would Son-sensei help him as he promised he would? He didn't have anywhere else to go, anyone else to turn to—

If Son-sensei refused him this time, there, there was no other option.

"Son-sensei, I know that I bothered you incessantly at that Tournament. I apologize for my appalling behavior, but I must as you again: Will you take me as your student?"

Silence greeted his words. Takahira-san waited, steadily glancing at Gohan in the eye, refusing to give up. It seemed there was still a bit of the old fire remaining there after all, Gohan mused. But it was not the either of them that broke the quiet at last.

"You should take him in, Gohan."

The two of them turned to see Goten with his hands on his hips. Chichi was standing by him, her arms full of rice bowls, assumedly for Takahira-san. Gohan's mother was nodding. Gohan was startled to see that Chichi was now shorter than her youngest son by two centimeters, although he really shouldn't have been.

"Oh, really?" Gohan asked. "What makes you think so?"

"It'd be good for you," Chichi responded vaguely as she swept in with her nutritious armfuls. Gohan rolled his eyes and impatiently gestured for his brother to continue.

"Let's face it, Gohan," Goten said, crossing his arms. "You can't just stand by and let someone who needs help go without it. and I can tell Takahira-san needs it," he retorted, steadfastly cutting off both Takahira-san and Gohan. "If you did, Gohan, you would hate yourself." He added in a lighter tone, "Besides, you know how I've been pestering you to get out more."

Gohan glared at the fourteen-year-old. "I'm going to beat you up for that," he threatened. Goten grinned; however, the expression faded as they both looked at the befuddled Takahira-san as he tried to fend off the maternal ministrations belonging to Chichi (3).

A quiet sigh snapped the reverie. "You have to take him in, niisan. I'm telling you to. You're the best person for the job. Not only do you actually have the time to spare, you're patient, you never get mad, and you're a great judge of character—"

"All flattery aside," Gohan murmured dryly, "You're basically ordering me to look after this guy and not just you. You, my ward and little brother, are _ordering _**me**, the guardian and your older brother, to watch this boy instead. Am I getting the gist of things here?"

Warily, Goten gazed at Gohan. He had no patent idea of the undercurrents in Gohan's voice, but he chose to tread carefully. This was Takahira-san, after all.

"Yes," he declared. (4) Gohan looked at him still for several seconds, face unreadable. Then he relaxed, voicing a mild "okay" before turning and ambling over to Takahira-san.

Above them, far above them, an exasperated crone muttered waspishly under her breath. Her companion, a sunglasses-clad old cowboy, only clapped the beldame on the back, laughing heartily.

:-:-:-:

"All right, Takahira," Gohan intoned the next day when the boy had been literally stuffed to the brim with food, slept, and awakened to be stuffed once more thanks to Chichi. "Your day of rest is over. You're going to burning every bit of energy that food has given you today. There's no time like the present either, so let's hop to it!"

Under Takahira's strained gaze, Gohan ushered him to the door. A painful cry escaped the teenager when he realized that he wasn't being cast out after all. For before him he beheld an obstacle course full of spikes, ropes, walls, nets, tables, and a wolf.

A son of the semi-wild Whey, this canine was panting at the apparent beginning of the course. His ears flicked to the new comers and his head turned to reveal the cunning glint in his yellow eyes. Takahira bravely repressed his obvious shudder, though he could not prevent the apprehension from reaching his appearance when the wolf made its loping way over to them.

Gohan, on the other hand, met the hound halfway. "Dante, you came!" he called, a Grin lighting his face as he waved. Dante whuffed in greeting; being of a nature not as ebullient as his father's, Dante would not permit Gohan to touch him. He sat warily, coldly aloof from the man and the not-man paying their respects to him. He had agreed to be here only because the not-man had offered to show him valuable hunting grounds for his pack.

"Dante will be going with you over the obstacle course. He's got a bit of an advantage over you having gone through the course before you. I had to have him test the course, since I'm not about to hurt an animal on a course designed for a human fighter."

Gohan cocked an eyebrow at Dante, who appeared to be giving him a royally doubtful glance.

"Anyway. The goal is to try to beat Dante in the obstacle course. I'm not expecting you to get this right on the first try, so don't be discouraged if you don't. You will be able to do that when I'm done with you, and do it easily."

Takahira-san nodded, a serious expression affixing itself to his features. Gohan would see this facial cast many times over the next few months. The look he would term as the Takahira Gaze would assure Gohan that his new pupil was functioning properly.

For now, the demi-Saiyan merely outlined the obstacles he'd laid out, starting with the hill they had to run down. The hill itself was daunting in its steepness, being a part of Mt. Paoz, but at the bottom was a large gate the contestants would have to climb over. The gate guarded the face of another hill, which contained large stones the two were required to jump to and from to other boulders on their way to the summit.

The obstacle course continued out of sight on the more or less even plateau only a little higher up than the summit. This part began to see the spikes we have mentioned previously, as well as the ropes, used in various creative ways.

All were determined to serve Takahira-san badly.

After the long plateau (long being an appropriate adjective as it indicates five kilometers), the walls finally popped up, seeming to sprout from the ground in their abruptness. Some were to be climbed; some run on top of; some blasted through entirely.

The majority was to be jumped: Their size ranged from a trivial decimeter tall to one point five meters. Ropes and spikes were to trouble Takahira-san and Dante here as well; the last wall had not only the ropes and the spikes, but situated itself uphill so the course curved back up the mountain to end where Gohan currently stood.

"Got that Takahira-san? Wait, what do you prefer to be called, Takahira or Hideki?" asked Gohan. The human looked startled: His eyes widened and flicked to the right then back.

"Uh," he stammered. "I don't know. I'm so used to being called Takahira—" Gohan again perceived hatred in his student, though the boy continued. "So I guess it'd be weird if you named me otherwise."

"Hmm," mused Gohan. "Since I don't feel like saying Takahira-san all the time, I'll find another name for you if you don't like Hideki. In the meantime, why don't you start? Dante seems to have gotten bored already."

Sure enough, the wolf had started trotting down the hill, leaving Takahira-san to uncharacteristically yelp and dash after him. Gohan looked after them pensively. He waited for them to begin toiling up the second hill before he moved, and that was to find himself in the house to search for some edibles.

_Let's see_, he thought to himself. _Where are the dumplings? _He found them in their appropriate place and began to eat them. _Now, what to name Takahira? He obviously hates his last name... And to call him by his first name is too personal for me to use, since I don't know him as anything more than a stranger, and a nuisance of one at that. _

He shifted and settled into a more comfortable position. He monitored the kis of both Dante and Takahira. _Dante must have run into some trouble,_ he contemplated. _Takahira's right on his tail. _He smiled at his involuntary joke.

_I wonder what's bothering Takahira? Now that I've taken him on, I can really work on him. I'll have to do this carefully, however, so that he'll tell me on his own. _

His smile broadened. _Time to put those manipulative skills to work!_

:-:-:-:

(1) _"The proud fourteen-year-old finally joined the ranks of the high-schoolers" _(SP: Goten's actually supposed to still be in middle school by Japanese standards, but I'll be the twelfth or so to admit it. )

(2) _"This year Trunks didn't have the same problem, for there were more juicy boys to share in on the fun. Sadly, this category did not include Goten"_ (SP: Sadly? Are you kidding?)

(3) _"...the befuddled Takahira-san as he tried to fend off the maternal ministrations belonging to Chichi."_ (SP: Who, incidentally, is not his mother. LOL.)

(4) _"...but he chose to tread carefully. This was Takahira-san, after all. 'Yes,' he declared."_ (SP face-faults)

:-:-:-:

A/n: End Double Update Chapters 1 of 2

_Updated 12.31.06_


	54. Chapter the Fifty Third: Training

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fifty-third

Disclaimer(s): Right. (has The Look on)

A/n: And we continue! Enjoy Double Update Chapters 2 of 2! (SP looks left, right, up, down, but doesn't see attack coming at her from upper left) Oof!

Enjoy the chap while I go deal with my pesky muse! (Growls and runs off, only now starting to bleed)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

I wonder what's bothering Takahira? Now that I've taken him on, I can really work on him. I'll have to do this carefully, however, so that he'll tell me on his own.

_His smile broadened._ Time to put those manipulative skills to work!

:-:-:-:

**Two Weeks Later: Fourteen Years after the Cell Games **

"Again, deshi, and faster!" Gohan shouted at the sweating figure racing by him. "I don't want to be able to see you kick that tree!"

He smothered a smile at the request; as he was a Saiyan, he would always be able to see his student kick the tree (SP: Hey, what are you doing with that pillow to that poor smile? Stop, I say, stop!). He actually wanted Takahira to kick it down in one blow, but in order to do that, the human needed more force than he was currently putting up.

"One more time!" he called. He thought he heard a groan from Takahira, but as he swung around to check, he only saw the dark-capped form chase the tree again. As Takahira jumped into the air to slam a foot on the tree, he faltered and fell back onto the ground.

_Oomph!_ Even Takahira could not deny that he was beaten. Gohan clucked his tongue and shook his head as he stumped over to him. "That's enough for today, deshi," he told the prostrate shape at his feet. "You need to eat."

"B-but, sensei," groaned Takahira, "I—"

"You _nothing_," Gohan growled, drawing his apprentice off of the ground. "I'm telling you to stop for today, and _I_ am your sensei. No protesting."

Takahira let out another grunt of objection, but finally sagged in Gohan's arms. The demi-Saiyan dragged Takahira over to the makeshift bed (which resembled more a nest of leaves than a bed) and carefully laid him there.

"Now then, how's your ankle?" inquired Gohan as he sat back on his heels. Takahira looked up sharply, then away. He didn't answer.

"_How's your ankle, deshi?_" the demi-Saiyan reiterated, steel edging his voice. Takahira stiffened at the tone, but deigned to answer this time:

"I—I'll need to bandage it, Son-sensei."

Gohan nodded wordlessly and stood up again. "All right then, you do that. I'll go hunting for food this time."

He raised a hand to stop Takahira's protestations again. "What have I told you about expecting too much of yourself, deshi?" he inquired, deceptively mild. "You've got to relax or you'll burst."

He turned around and strode off before Takahira could disapprove anymore. "Relax!" he reminded his student over his shoulder. "You'll do the hunting and exploring tomorrow!"

As the glen he'd found a week ago fell out of his view, he sighed. Training Takahira was harder than he'd thought. So far he'd gotten nothing out of his deshi (1), incidentally the only thing he could think of calling Takahira, and a feeling of being in over his head was creeping up on him.

_What did I get myself into?_ he mused quietly. _Training a human is not the same thing as dealing with Goten and Trunks. _The sight of deer tracks interrupted his thoughts; deer was not something they'd had since the first day they'd been here.

In a short time, Gohan had tracked and killed an elderly doe. He'd hoisted the deer onto shoulders and was walking back up the semi-mountain they lived on when an absolutely brilliant idea struck him. It was simple; it was sweet; it was rather like the training his father had initially received. Why hadn't he thought of this before?

"Because you didn't exactly get this training yourself," he muttered waspishly, instantly peeved at himself. "Piccolo just left _you_ in the wild to fend for yourself."

"Pardon?" a voice, next to him, said. Gohan turned and greeted the girl walking beside him. She was clutching a teddy bear (not that she was young enough anymore for one, he noted again) and watching him with curious and intelligent eyes. He had suspected for some time that she didn't always act curious and intelligent.

"Just muttering to myself, Meme," he informed her. "You know I do that a lot."

"Yes," she agreed solemnly. "I've often heard that talking to oneself is the first sign of insanity."

"Really?" Gohan raised his eyebrows. "If that's so, then we're all insane."

"Not me," Meme giggled, hugging her bear to herself. "I talk to 'Gura all the time, but never myself."

Gohan smiled at the nearby village's oddball pacing easily with him up the hill. "But it's fun to talk to yourself," he argued, the twinkle in his eye belying his serious tone. Meme giggled again and skipped off, just in time for Gohan to enter his glen once more.

"Whew," he breathed as he slung the deer down to Takahira's nest. He evinced no surprise to see that Takahira was not there but instead still kicking at the tree.

"Stop that, deshi," he commanded, gesturing imperiously. "If I catch you not relaxing like that one more time, I will send you off on laps around the mountain," he threatened. "Oh, wait, I'm going to make you do that starting tomorrow, anyway, so that's not a threat."

"Wha?" Takahira articulately questioned. "But—what about the tree?"

Gohan flapped a hand carelessly. "You'll do that later," he said. "Now I just want you to run around the mountain."

"But there's that girl on this mountain!" Takahira protested, his favorite action of the day. Gohan pinned him with black daggers of eyes and quieted him.

"_That_ _girl_ is named Meme," Gohan educated him, "and she's harmless as long as you don't do anything to her. All you have to do is talk to her as if she's a normal human being. Which she is," he added sternly.

"No, she's not!" Takahira complained violently. "She's a nutcase, her and that teddy bear—"

"A nutcase that knows this mountain much better than you or I do," Gohan reminded him. "I would treat her much more nicely than you have been doing if I were you, deshi."

"Hmpf," Takahira snorted, crossing his arms. The action almost hid his wince, Gohan noted, an observation that caused him to look pointedly at the other boy. Takahira seemed to resist for a second longer; finally he limped over to the demi-Saiyan and sat carefully down.

"After you're done eating and bandaging that ankle," Gohan said to the boy glaring at his part of the now-roasting venison, "I want you to meditate for an hour. I'll be running some errands while you do this, but I _will_ know if you've been shirking when I get back. So don't you dare not do it or I'll start you on those laps around the mountains early."

He ignored the glare his student offered him, instead giving a cheeky wave as he hopped to his feet (his deer already done and with no traces remaining) and sauntered off.

Once he was out of the glade, he paused and held his head high. To any, it might seem like the resident demi-Saiyan was deeply (?) enamored of the scene rising to meet him, of a not-so-small village nestled comfortably against the mountain opposite of him, and of the deer frolicking madly to escape the very hungry dinosaur (carefully staying away from the village), and of the village children, tiny with the distance, gleefully yelling after the dinosaur, urging it on—

But, as we are special, we know that Gohan was really checking on Takahira by ki and by hearing. Hearing curse words (2) and clumsy shifts of clothing over the hungry snap of the fire, and feeling Takahira's ki fluctuated painfully, Gohan deduced that Takahira was indeed bandaging his ankle as he waited for his dinner to cook.

Shaking his head at the difference between his student's behavior and his actions, Gohan set down further onto the mountain, intent on obtaining that other part of the plan for Takahira that he'd thought in conjunction to running around the mountain.

He returned an hour and two minutes later to find a considerably calmer Takahira finishing up the remnants of his dinner. It had been amusing to Gohan to find out that Takahira came from a vegetarian family but nevertheless pounced on meat like he thought it was a gift from Kami. Gohan had not been so base as to test Takahira with questions as to why this irony existed, but he had derived (somehow) that the boy's father had recently switched over to vegetarianism for some inane reason or other. Takahira had followed but only because he loved his mother too much—

And whatever that had to do with his father's vegetarianism, Gohan didn't know. But it was still amazing, the things that you found out about even the most closed-off people. Gohan shook his head as he approached the full-fledged human stabbing his chopsticks pointedly at the roots he'd apparently rustled up with the venison. The action earned him a grin from his sensei, who nevertheless added:

"Good, you followed my orders (though I did tell you to meditate _after_ you'd eaten). Now stretch while I tell you what I've been up to for the past hour."

"You're going to tell me? You're not going to make me guess?" Takahira queried sharply, black eyes suspicious. "I can't be liking it then."

"You don't like the ones I _do_ make you guess, deshi," Gohan retorted, exasperated. "Give this one a chance."

"You'll make me do it whether or not I want to," Takahira snorted, rolling his eyes.

"And with that attitude, you are not going to be my student," Gohan returned, his voice a chillingly neutral tone. He met the shocked gaze leveled at him coolly, even knowing that this withdrawal of his usually animated self was paramount to the bottom of his deshi's world dropping out.

Or so Takahira's ki implied. Still, Gohan meant what he said (and really, he shouldn't mean so much to Takahira after so short a time together). He did have a slight feeling that he was going to regret this, however.

"You may continue your training on your own if you want, now that I have shown you some basics." He turned away and started back the way he'd come, towards the only entrance and exit of the glade.

"Wait, Son-sensei! Wait!" If it weren't for the panic in Takahira's inflection, Gohan wouldn't have turned back. The sight of Takahira with his arm stretched out and a pleading look on his face was just as striking.

"I didn't mean to be ungrateful! Please don't leave!" By the way Takahira's eyes no longer really saw him, Gohan must have struck a deeper chord within him than he'd meant to. "Don't go!" Takahira begged again, his voice suddenly younger and very small.

"I'm right here, Takahira-san," Gohan answered gently, crouching by his student's side. "Don't beg anymore. It's disturbing." While he talked, he reached out and smoothed the ebon hair back as gently as possible. Takahira began crying anyway.

"Oh, dear," Gohan muttered as he settled into a more comfortable position. "I'm an idiot."

He ignored the mental twinge that Hageshiijutsu flicked him through their connection. Instead, he allowed Takahira to weep out all his frustration, resentment, and fear of getting left behind, at his side.

When Takahira had fallen asleep where he sat, Gohan carefully laid him aside and stretched him out, mindful of the ankle. "Sleep well, deshi," he told the sleeping boy. "And wake up feeling better."

It had been two weeks since he'd taken on Takahira. In that time Takahira had not only bounced back from whatever it was that had squashed him, but had gotten even bolder and more persistent. Part of this was an impatience to get as strong as possible (a drive fueled by a deeper fear that the boy just wouldn't admit). The majority of it was a frustration at doing the same thing over and over again, not learning any "secret techniques" or "master skills".

Gohan snorted. There was no need for anything like that, not when his goal would be reached the same way and a lot quicker with the current plan. Ah well, it was just as well that he'd gone down to the village. It would given Takahira something new to think about, even negatively. He'd probably be less grudging about it if Gohan told him that the exercise he had in mind was a prerequisite for one of his desired "secret techniques".

Of course, his errand could also help with Takahira's emotional problems. Gohan's visage darkened into thoughtfulness as he pondered the unexpected merits of the new element of his "syllabus", not mentioning of course the many ways it could backfire on him (not that anything ever backfired on him, eh? **Sweatdrop**).

"Son-sensei?" While he'd been thinking, Takahira had apparently been waking. Gohan turned his head of spikes to better criticize his student's appearance.

"You feel better?" he asked, sharply recording the human's ki as well as his appearance. "I appear to have set something off wen I threatened to leave." The other male seemed to have reverted back to his subdued state of only two weeks back, only blinking at Gohan bemusedly.

"Deshi?" Gohan questioned again, this time more gently. "Are you there?"

"Hai," Takahira said, nodding tiredly. Gohan sat back on his heels.

"I'm sorry I told you to train on your own. That was rash of me," the demi-Saiyan said. "I just don't do well when I feel that my efforts to train someone are unappreciated." ("Does anyone?" is my question.)

"No, Son-sensei, I shouldn't have been ungrateful," Takahira responded, still subdued. But Gohan saw a flash of—something—in his student's eye and became instantly exasperated again.

"Cut the act, deshi," he ordered sharply. Takahira's head swung up in surprise, then he narrowed his eyes as they filled with that familiar resentment. "Then teach me something!" he spat. "Don't make me keep doing the same old things over and over!"

"And the begging? Was that an act too?" Gohan retorted. He had the momentary satisfaction of seeing the fifteen-year-old's (SP: He _is_ fifteen, isn't he? I've forgotten how old he is. **Sweatdrops**) face shutter down and look away.

Nevertheless, the demi-Saiyan sighed and ran his hand through a spikes a moment later (Aww, poor Gohan. What a bratty kid he has to deal with). He said, "I know you won't believe me, but there is a method to this madness."

Of course there was a disbelieving snort, as Gohan predicted.

"There is," Gohan insisted. "But I'm not going to make you try to kick down the tree anymore." He met his student's sharp gaze pointedly. "We'll stop that for now and move on to other matters. Instead, what I'll have you do is this."

And he proceeded to outline his new "hare-brained scheme", which took surprisingly little time considering how long it took him to arrange it. Now, before the dear readers wonder if the authoress is, at any point, going to reveal this plan—

They're already wondering, the muse says? Well, that's okay, because the authoress isn't telling just yet! She says that her adoring, gracious, and patient audience (which the authoress is ever so grateful for btw, has she said that yet?) will just have to WAIT AND SEE! No tomatoes please! (Readers groan collectively, eyeing the fruit in their hands) **Authoress breathes a sigh of relief **

Anyways. So Gohan told, so Takahira stomped off. Or he tried to, but, you know, an ankle can only take so much in one day. So Takahira went down, Gohan sighed, and the demi-Saiyan went to fetch herbs for a compression (since he didn't want too many people to know about Senzu Beans—and he kind of doubted Takahira would take it). And another day passed in the strange and painfully slow training of one Takahira Hideki by one Son Gohan.

:-:-:-:

"Ugh," Takahira panted as he finally reached the summit of the mountain. He'd been toiling up it for the past two hours with a _very_ heavy pack of wood on his back, helping an old but disgustingly sprightly man collect firewood. It was part of the "New Element" of Son-sensei's plan, as the man liked to call it, but personally, Takahira thought Son-sensei was lazy and didn't want to teach him how to beat his enemies with a single finger.

Son-sensei was also _sadistic_, for assigning him to be the village's odd-job boy _and_ making him run around the mountain. Takahira would be surprised if he didn't collapse when he got to the glade again, or worse, _die_ altogether. (3)

But no, he wasn't going to do that. He was training under Son-sensei for a purpose, and that purpose he would reach no matter what. Son-sensei had at least told the villagers to take it easy on him (4) at first, meaning that this job was the only one he'd do for today.

His reverie was broken by a tap on the shoulder. "We go back now. No wood more to carry," the old man told him in broken Universal.

Takahira nodded to show that he understood, and began the toil back down the mountain without hardly a murmur. (Whatever that means)

:-:-:-:

(1) Deshi: disciple, apprentice, pupil—some of you may have seen this term in Emma Lipardi's "An Aunt's Love" (which, incidentally, is on my favorite's list). It's Japanese. I hope.

(?) _"...like the resident demi-Saiyan was deeply (?) enamored of the scene rising to meet him..."_ (SP: Are we sure that "deeply" is the right word to use here?)

(2) _"Hearing curse words,"_ (SP: Bad Takahira, bad!)

(3) _"Takahira would be surprised if he didn't collapse when he got to the glade again, or worse,_ die _altogether_." (SP: Unlike a certain Miss Hermione Granger in the movie version of _Harry Potter and Sorcerer's Stone_, Takahira's got _his_ priorities straight. LOL!)

(4) _"Son-sensei had at least told the villagers to take it easy on him"_ (SP: hauling firewood up a mountain is _easy_????! Ohh... **Thud**)

:-:-:-:

A/n: My many apologies. I, er, lost track of this story for a while, buried as I was beneath all the homework, college applications, and athletic/drama events in my schedule. Thank the gods for Christmas break (although I really should be working on my three (THREE! THREE ESSAYS!!) essays for the U of C that are due by Jan 1. **Sigh**), which means that I can relax a little bit and focus on things that really matter. (Grins)

As my dear muse mentioned so courteously, my writing style is sort of _different_ (at least it is to me). So if it seems a little more serious to you, you're not the only one. If it _doesn't_ seem more serious to you, _that's perfectly all right!_ **Sweatdrops** LOL? Anyways. I figured that I owed it to you guys to get _something_ up for **VA**, since I'd updated **Kakkhan II** so many times and with nary a peep out of Vigi Ange. Amazing how Christmas can make a person feel so guilty, eh? **Sweatdrops** Hehehe...

I tried to keep this chapter at least a _little_ consistent with the previous ones (since I _did_ get abandoned in the middle of it by Aline-chan), but I'm not sure how well I succeeded, given how many "professionalizing" changes I was already gradually introducing to VA (resulting not only from nagging and irritating reviewers but also a desire out of myself to bring **some** dignity to VA, LOL). ...Ah well. I tried my best. (Sweatdropping, ignores muse's snarky comments off the set)

(Sighs) Right, then. With all that said, time to kill me! (Runs away screaming as Aline pops in, still holding PGHMGD)

Readers look after the dynamic duo bemusedly and shake their heads. While they shake their heads, out of the corner of their eye a piece of paper catches their attention. They crowd around the paper and read it, noting it as follows:

_Takahira-san and Gohan have started the serious training! All right! But what was the deal with that "begging" thing? Was that an act, as Gohan asked, or was it the real thing? Is a fear of being left behind part of Takahira's murky emotional problems, or is it just a straightforward, no strings attached, all the cards on the table desire to get stronger? If so, then why would Gohan think that his plan could help with Takahira's emotional problems? Speaking of which, _how_ can the plan help in the first place? Find out all that and more, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!_

_Thanks to **gregory **(x2), **miroku-has-darkness** (yes, you're back), **Tiara Shin** (erk! Sorry for taking so long! **Cringes**), **ExtrmEagle** (You too! **Hides completely**), and **lpgohanfanatic** (I'm here!) for reviewing! I hope these people and more have been patient enough to stick with me. **Sweatdrops**_

_Ave! _

_TheShadowPanther and Aline, from **AASN **_

AASN; Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

Writing is what we do for you at . Enjoy. 

Readers look up from the paper and at each other. "Even on paper, SP has to send us off right!" they exclaim exasperatedly. A little bird flies down out of nowhere and perches on one of the readers' shoulders. "Of course!" it squeaks, shocking the readers into a stunned silence. Smiling (somehow), the bird flaps its wings once and zooms away again, all the while squeaking:

"This story was updated 12.31.06!  
Merry Belated Christmas and Happy New Year's Eve!"  
(That is, for those who celebrate it.  
For those who don't, have a good time anyway!)

Meanwhile, the readers are still stunned.


	55. Chapter the Fifty Fourth: Stories

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fifty-fourth

Disclaimer: Hmm... (Looks furtively about at all the FUNimation lawyers looming over her) Err, I don't own Dragonball Z? (Smiles nervously)

A/n: Little quicker this time, and a much longer chapter. I hope you all enjoy yourselves (and by enjoying yourselves, I mean REVIEWING!!!)

Aline: (Boredly) What she said...(Waves hand languidly)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_His reverie was broken by a tap on the shoulder. "We go back now. No wood more to carry," the old man told him in broken Universal. _

_Takahira nodded to show that he understood, and began the toil back down the mountain without hardly a murmur. (Whatever that means)_

:-:-:-:

**Two MORE Weeks Later: Fourteen Years After the Cell Games**

Two more weeks went by like this, with Takahira doing better after Gohan secretly fed him a Senzu Bean after all. The boy was barely able to make the entire trip of the mountain's circumference without stopping now, and he was finding that the heavy labor the villagers assigned him was slowly becoming more manageable. But still he had not learned anything of worth.

"What is the point of all this?" Takahira fumed, kicking at the various pieces of debris lying in his way. "I'm perfectly willing to do it and all—"

"It doesn't seem that way to me," Gohan muttered, staying carefully out of the way as the 100 human stalked by him. Takahira merely ranted on, gesturing wildly.

"But it's been a month and I still don't know anything!"

Gohan sighed as Takahira pinned him with a glare. "Go kick that tree, deshi," he said, pointing at the fourth-biggest tree in the glade, a maple.

"I thought you said we wouldn't kick trees anymore!" Takahira-san shouted. Gohan shot him a glare to quiet him.

"Go," he ordered again. He had to reiterate it a third time before Takahira-san even moved.

"What's the point?" he grumbled as he stomped over to a place suitable for launching himself at the looming plant. He pumped himself with a sigh, a deep breath, and a roar.

"Hyaaah!" He took off like a cheetah, jumped into the air, and smashed into the tree. A series of echoing _cracks_ rent the air upon impact, causing Takahira's eyes to widen even before he landed a meter away on the other side.

Gohan, choosing to be dramatic, let the silence settle for a few seconds before he broke it. He allowed Takahira to properly inspect the tree, which was bent almost into two and had giant splinters at the point of impact where the boy had hit it.

"By the time I'm done with you, you won't need a running start to do that. by the time I'm done with you, in fact you'll be breaking them cleanly with a single finger."

Gohan paced over to the stunned Takahira and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "But you're not going to be able to do this overnight. You have to work and work at it. This course of action that I have you on will help you with that, but only if you dedicate yourself to it with that vigor and concentration I know you're capable of. So, stop whining, buckle up, eat, work, meditate, and you'll get to the point you're looking for. Got it?"

Takahira nodded, the fire back in his eyes as he finally closed his mouth and turned from the nearly destroyed tree trunk.

"Hai, Son-sensei," he replied, the serious tone that he had possessed at the beginning of training returned. Gohan had not even notice that it was gone, which was frankly pathetic, he admitted. Gohan did notice that his student wiped at his eyes after he turned away from the poor maple tree (which had been dying anyway, not that Takahira knew that or that it justified kicking it down). But the demi-Saiyan politely ignored it and instead strode over to the clearing that was their eating spot.

"Good pickings today, deshi," Gohan commented as he looked over the roots, leaves, and rabbits piled about. "Some of these look like Meme's handiwork," he added casually, bending to pick at a beautifully dressed bunny (and not with clothes, mind you! **Aline smirks**)

he heard more than saw Takahira fidget suddenly. When he flicked a look over his shoulder, though, Takahira was a serious-faced as ever. "I was having difficulties gathering dinner," he began stiffly. "I...sort of had to ask Meme to help."

"You asked her, or she stepped in?" Gohan queried shrewdly, removing his gaze before it could really cause Takahira to squirm. (Darn it!)

"I asked her," was the emphatic reply. "She wasn't eager..."

"But she did help you," Gohan finished. "I hope you thanked her."

"I did." Gohan smirked to himself at the strain his student's voice. He finally decided, much the authoress' disappointment, to quit teasing his apprentice and reward him.

"Good job, deshi," he remarked blandly, rising to his feet. "The rate this is goin, you'll find yourself a potential girlfriend in Meme, in, oh, about two months, give or take."

"Girlfriend?" Takahira choked. All right, so Gohan couldn't resist another dig. It was all for a purpose, wasn't it, never mind that he didn't exactly know what this particular purpose was? "Two months? You really think we'll be here that long?"

Takahira looked momentarily stricken when Gohan glanced at him, but the human recovered quickly. "No whining," he told himself. "It'll take as long as it has to take."

"Oh, I didn't actually see that as whining," Gohan informed his student. "I was just picking on you." He waved his hand dismissively at his student's glare. "I don't know how long we'll be here, actually," he confessed. "Depends on how long it takes for you to get where you want to go." And where I want you to go, too, he added mentally. Takahira glanced at him suspiciously; Gohan shrugged him off.

"Let's eat," he said instead.

It was fortunate for Gohan that he ate either at Mt. Paoz or in the Otherworld when not with Takahira, or he'd have never survived on the meager rations (or what were meager to him) of the mountains. As a result, Takahira nowadays had almost all the food to himself, though the demi-Saiyan couldn't resist taking a few bites for himself (see: two rabbits and three handfuls of roots). It was also partly to prevent arousing suspicion from Takahira, who was already suspicious about him 24/7. (That must be hard, being suspicious 24/7). Gohan's life was hard enough (Aline snickers).

As Takahira ate, Gohan questioned him on various parts of his day. "how are the villagers treating you?" was one question. "Did you carry firewood for old man Li again today?" followed it, as did "Are the dogs still barking at you?" (This last was inspired by an attempted dog attack on Takahira only two days ago.)

Between bites, Takahira-san tired to answer in coherent sentences. "Fine," he answered for the first inquiry, "They tell me I'm not so bad for a foreigner." "yeah, _and_ I carried Toko-san's laundry." (As Toko-san was the village laundromat owner, she understandably had a _lot_ of laundry each and every day.) "Mostly; one dog, that bull mastiff mutt, seems to like me better; she's starting to follow me around."

Gohan's deshi swallowed his last bite and jumped up. "Can I have another try at that tree, Son-sensei?" he asked. Gohan could see the eagerness that pervaded the human, just as he knew, if he allowed Takahira to do this, the boy would be sore.

He said as much. "Sure, if you want to run with sore feet, legs, and arms tomorrow." At the considering look that jumped onto Takahira's face, the demi-Saiyan added, "Correction. Make that _throbbing_ arms and legs. Because if you start on that three, I'm going to grill you to death on that thing."

The considering expression morphed into a resigned look instead. Slowly, he sat back down, then thought of something. Shifting his position, he pulled his legs into the lotus position, pushed in his back, and seized a deep breath.

Gohan smirked as his student fell into meditation instead of going for the maple tree, already battered beyond what it could take. Takahira-san was doing well.

Rising quietly, he stood over his student and spoke almost silently. "After you're done, I'd like you to run the circumference of the mountain again, then go back down to the villagers. I'll be gone for a while, so if you're done and don't see him, don't worry. Just go back to the village and ask for lodgings. I'll come and get you."

He stepped away; Takahira-san didn't move. Smiling, he raised his hand in a pointless farewell—

The next thing he saw as his brother's smiling face. His own grin waved a hello in return, even as two pairs of arms battled each other on the way to embraces.

"Niisan!" Goten cried happily, squeezing his elder brother's shoulders with the force only a Saiyan could muster. "It's only been a month, but if feels like forever!"

"I've been over here for lunch every day!" Gohan protested, albeit still grinning. Goten shook his head. "But I never see you at them," he explained. "I'm always somewhere else. Didn't you notice?"

"Of course! It was entirely too sane for you to be there," Gohan teased. Goten snorted. "Yeah, I knew you weren't there. I was just rubbing it in."

Goten wrinkled his nose, causing his brother to laughingly tweak it. "Hey!" the younger demi-Saiyan yelped, glowering at Gohan. "That wasn't nice."

"Whatever," Gohan drawled carelessly (**Gasp!**) "What have you been up to?"

Goten rolled his eyes in answer. "Oh, you know, smoking pot, snorting coke, beating up people, the usual," he said nonchalantly. Gohan delivered a sharp cuff to the back of the teenager's head. "Don't ever joke about that," the elder growled to the yelping younger. "It's not a joking matter."

"Jeez," Goten muttered, rubbing his neck. "I didn't think you would go berserk on me like that."

"Perhaps I went berserk because I have a faint inkling of what peer pressure feels like?" Gohan retorted sarcastically. Goten shot him an odd look; Gohan, interpreting it correctly, said, "I realize that my idea of peers is not the same as yours, and that saving the world is not the same thing as facing it in high school, but—"

"But," Goten put in, rolling his eyes, "You should have more faith in me having the common sense _not_ to even go _near_ the things."

"I do have faith," Gohan persisted, "But you should still have respect for those people who aren't as strong as you are."

Goten stared at his brother; the latter merely crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow in return. Momentarily Goten dropped his eyes and mumbled a quick, "Of course. I'm sorry for my impudence."

He repeated his apology in a louder and clearer fashion when Gohan said, "What was that? I couldn't hear you." Gohan himself pulled his brother into a hug, saying that Goten was learning and that he would always be proud of him no matter what he did. "And that includes whatever mistakes you make," he added sternly. Goten nodded, but whether it was because he understood or because he wanted to be left alone about the subject already, Gohan couldn't tell. He suspected it was the latter.

"Oh, Gohan!" Chichi exclaimed happily upon seeing him. Gohan blinked at her; she had appeared out of nowhere (oh, like you did, Gohan-san?) and was already increasing his heart rate (har, har, har, very funny Gohan, or have you forgotten that you're dead) just with her presence. He had never really noticed that before. Odd.

At any rate, Chichi was chattering away at Goten. "—your brother your news?"

"Mom!" Goten exclaimed. "I wanted to be the one to break it to him!"

"But you are, sweetie, you're the one going to tell him!" Chichi responded, picking up the basketfuls of laundry that Gohan only now noticed that was standing amongst. One more decimeter over and he'd have been _in_ one, he mused, bending to help.

"That's not what I mean!" Goten hotly pursued. He then gave up a second later. "Oh, whatever," he said disgustedly. "You're not going to understand anyway."

"So what's your news, otouto?" Gohan asked over his shoulder as Chichi presumptuously began t dump a majority of the baskets into his arms. "Mom, don't do that," he chastised gently. "If you give too many, they'll fall off and into the dirty, ruining all your hard work."

Chichi considered his words, then nodded. "We'll make a second trip then," she said before moving off towards the house. Gohan rolled his eyes and began lightening his load considerably.

"I try the same thing and she snaps at me for being silly," Goten griped as he intercepted the baskets' trajectory towards the ground. "Mom's been moodier lately," he continued. "More capricious."

"Don't you mean mercurial?" Gohan asked, watching where his feet were going so he didn't trip.

"Eh, I guess," Goten shrugged. The action almost sent the clothes tumbling—but Saiyans really are quite lucky through, especially in terms of reflexes.

"Nice save, bro." Gohan leaned against the door of the capsule hours to make it open. The door did open, but nearly fell off of its hinges from the teeny tiny bit of power Gohan added to it. "Oh, well," he said, shrugging carefully, to Goten. "I guess I'm not used to reserving my power with respect to harmless physical objects like a door, for instance."

Goten grinned in response. Chichi glanced over at them and seemed almost angry, but she controlled her reaction and instead marched out the door.

"I see what you mean," Gohan said quietly.

Goten looked relieved and expressed the same sentiment. "Dad just blinks at me and asks me what I'm talking about."

Gohan smiled disparagingly. "Dad is not as dense as he seems. You just have to put him in a situation that requires him to have his wits about him." He paused before continuing, in a deliberately delicate tone, "and usually those situations involve fighting."

Goten snorted. "Guess what he's doing right now?" he asked rhetorically as they both headed outside. Gohan shook his head mock-sadly. "Anyway," he stated dismissively, "you said you had news for me. Is it good news?" he pressed.

"Depends," he heard Goten mutter, but he was spared from asking as Goten added in an upbeat manner, "I got invited to do this international exchange program at my school. I don't know what country—"

"That's great, bro!" Gohan captured his brother in a half-hug, half-choke. "That's totally awesome!" Excitement and happiness for his brother bubbled through him. "You'll get to see a slice of the world before you graduate! How cool is that?"

Goten, when Gohan finally let him breathe, was grinning, but not in a particularly happy way. "You're probably the only person who's really happy for me like that," the youngest Son explained upon being pressed. "Everyone else was sort of weird."

"How so?" Gohan inquired, absentmindedly handing Goten a basket. Chichi stomped by in a huff; Gohan looked after her intensely, his forehead creased, then favored Goten with the same narrow-eyed look. Goten nodded tiredly, causing Gohan to blow out a breath.

"I'm already getting tired of this," he murmured. "How did Dad react?"

"Oh." Goten made a dismissive gesture that revealed more than it didn't. "He was happy, sure, but he was definitely more interested in his second bowl of rice."

"And the others?" Gohan asked gently. Goten shrugged, another enlightening motion.

"Oh, man," Gohan murmured. Shifting his basket, he brought Goten close for another hug, hoping he gave the comfort Goten needed. "In that case, you should go," he told the black hair splayed over his shoulder. "Get away from everyone here and prove to yourself your own worth, if it doesn't anyone here."

"You think it will do that?" Goten's voice may have been muffled, but the pained hope in it hustled Gohan to greater efforts at comfort. Even if the effort was only to carefully set down the clothes basket to better embrace his younger brother. Goten, too, abandoned his own basket and gladly took in the slightly ethereal feel and smell of his older brother that always made him feel safe.

"Thanks, niisan," he declared into that feeling. Gratitude suffused him, gratitude that one of the four Lesser Rulers of the Universe had convinced Gohan to be his guardian angel, or he knew he would have been terribly lost now. This was a gut-deep sensation that tightened Goten's arms even further around his brother, until even Goten half-believed that he would snap Gohan into two.

Not a pretty thought.

They released each other eventually; all the baskets had disappeared, however, to their initial surprise. "Mom sure knows how to be quiet when he wants to," Goten commented wonderingly.

"Hm," was Gohan's only answer. "Well, congratulations on the exchange program again. Where do you think you'll be going?"

as Goten brightened up again, spouting off his answers ("I think I might be going to either America or Spain; personally I want America"), Gohan looked back at the house with a thoughtful frown. He stared especially at the face of his mother lingering in the window, looking unaccountably sad and far away.

:-:-:-:

"So, deshi, how'd your sleepover go?" Gohan teased his student bright and early the next morning. Takahira merely huffed in annoyance; he was still grumbling about how his sensei had tricked him.

Gohan only chuckled in answer, the laughter shaking his shoulders. "Now, now," he admonished, "no need to be so—"

Whatever adjective he might have supplied to describe Takahira's mood failed to obtain life. Both their heads whipped around as on towards the sound of a distant scream; Gohan calculated that it must be several more kilometers away than it sounded because of the distortion the mountains offered to any noise.

"I think I can make it, Son-sensei," the grim-faced human beside him said. Gohan cast him an aside glance in answer.

"Yes, but can still you fight afterwards, if such an action is necessary?" the stern tone that came out of his mouth was not one that Gohan used often, excepting this afternoon earlier with Goten. Takahira paused; that alone was enough.

"Pursue your original plan if you want," Gohan said to fill the silence. His feet already picked themselves up in preparation for moving rapidly out of the glen; Gohan had to tell them to be slow so he could talk to his student. "But don't be disappointed if when you arrive, the action has already happened."

He sped off without another sound, slow enough for Takahira to be able to see him, but fast enough to "rival" the speed of the characters in one of those hokey martial arts films. Takahira was capable of going this fast, and here was an opportunity to show him how. At least Takahira would learn _something_ new from this training.

Gohan had been trained to always take whatever opportunity he could. It didn't mean he _always _did so in real life, but fighting was a cruel mistress, far harsher than reality.

So Gohan ran, leaving Takahira to gape after him alone.

Once out of the glade, he took to flitting through the trees. Now he truly released his energy, increasing his velocity until he was too fast for humans to see even if they knew he was coming. He left waving treetops and whirling leaves in his wake; he even upset two birds' nests and three chittering squirrels in his hunt for The Scream. And as was a trait of Saiyan speed, Gohan was at the scene of the crime in an insanely short time, in this particular instance taking only .21 seconds flat to get there.

He had to pause in his current treetop and crouch down, for the sight he saw would almost certainly have spotted him if he'd moved any more than that. as it was, the sight lifted her head already at the unnatural wind that howled through the trees. As Gohan saw the eyes of the human standing over the unconscious form of one of the village children, he growled impulsively and instinctively.

The werewolf snapped her head around to his branch, but Gohan had already moved to another hiding place to compensate for his slip. He stayed downwind of the creature but retreated to the ground to better see who this werewolf's victim was.

His throat seized up when he saw "the village idiot" Meme-chan lying pale and still on the ground, with outstanding bruises seemingly writhing in the eerie light of the forested mountain. Not far away from her he saw the crumpled form of her father, who was the master carpenter of the village and who loved Meme-chan dearly. Taito loved his daughter so much in fact that he would rather die than let a werewolf take away the only family he had.

Retreating to the trees again, Gohan laid back to better formulate a plan of action. This woman was not in werewolf form yet, but he could tell her change was near. She kept circling about her prey, keeping her head down and closer to the ground than should be natural. Her eyes were wary and an abnormal shade of brown, the tawny orange-rimmed shade belonging only to a wolf.

As Gohan didn't know how this werewolf operated, whether she pounced on her victims immediately once she transformed or if she dragged them away to a private hideout and than started in on them. Too, he didn't know how she fought as a werewolf, if she lunged to bite him immediately or waited until he was weakened before delivering the final blow.

His ears perked up at a sound coming from in front of him. he looked up to see that the white-haired werewolf, apparently satisfied that she was alone, had bent over Meme-chan and was crooning soft words to her.

"Pretty, pretty girl," she started saying. "Those idiots aren't worth you, treating you like a _retard_ and not looking past your eyes. But I've seen you, oh yes, and you're not that way at all. You're _beautiful_." The woman reached out a short finger and brushed away stray hairs from Meme-chan's forehead. Gohan barely restrained himself from attacking the werewolf; he needed this observance time to determine his best plan of action.

Gohan didn't know if a werewolf was strong enough to take down a Saiyan or if those monstrous teeth could break Saiyan skin. He wasn't going to rely unnecessarily only on brute strength and leave things to chance—

But seeing the woman caress Meme-chan in such a way, like Meme-chan was a prize doll, was almost too much. The pickup of Takahira distinctive footfalls, even from this distance, clinched his decision for him.

From above, he saw the werewolf also sense Takahira's footsteps. She perked her head for two seconds, then growled and bounded out of the area in his student's direction. Instantly Gohan was off and running after her. He caught up the werewolf just as she was about to ambush Takahira. Instead, _he_ ambushed the werewolf, slamming into her from behind with a flying jump kick (literally flying, as he was still in the trees) to the back of her neck and laid her flat on her stomach in front of his student.

Gohan could tell that Takahira knew the woman was a werewolf, so as his victim struggled feebly under his foot, the demi-Saiyan ordered, "Takahira, go north by northwest two meters and stand guard over what you find there."

His voice must have been unusually brusque, for Takahira, actually about to open his mouth, closed it and sprinted off like a shot. Gohan himself kept his foot planted firmly on the werewolf's neck, despite her strengthening struggles, until Takahira was gone. Then he reached a hand down, grasped the werewolf's albino hair, and wrenched his grip one way while he jerked his foot the other.

A crisp _snap_ told him effort was successful, but just to be sure, he collected a large ball of energy and shot it at her head. The body jerked, but feel still; its ki finally faded. Muttering a quick apology for such a disrespectful death, Gohan quickly incinerated the rest of the werewolf and set back off again, hopefully to find Takahira with the others.

He did find his student with the others, but Takahira had such the look on his face that Gohan was instantly worried.

"Is Meme-chan all right?" he inquired, almost not waiting for Takahira's answer before going to check on the girl himself. He breathed a sigh of relief to see she was fine, though still bruised and unconscious. Her father, too, had evidence of his futile chase after the werewolf: Scratches and little dots of allergic reactions marked him, and the largish bump on his head told where the werewolf had decked him.

"That was how my mother usually looked like when my father came home from a late day at his job." The words were hardly more than a whisper, but Gohan straightened up and gave them their due attention. Takahira didn't seem to notice, though: He had turned his gaze upon Meme-chan and was staring at her intensely.

"I hated seeing her like that," the human added, still in low tones, "but all my mother would do was make excuses for him, Takahira. Even though he beat her, she still clung to him and wanted to live her life with him. She'd tell me over and over again to respect my father, but no matter how much I tried, for her, I couldn't do it.

"So I swore to myself that one day I would be strong enough to protect my mother. That one day I'd be able to take her to a place that was safe for her, where I could look over her and she wouldn't get hurt anymore. It was the only thing that got me through those days, knowing that someday that SOB would get his, and that I would be the one to show him his mistakes."

He lowered his head, but Gohan had already seen the tears. The demi-Saiyan stepped over and grasped Takahira's shoulders in a gently firm grip. But the human wasn't done.

"I grew stronger and stronger. But my father, who had been a karate master in his day, was always stronger, and could always knock me down. And ever day, my mother would just get more and more bruised. She would get sadder and sadder, but would try so hard to keep my father happy. But Takahira was never satisfied. He always drank, but it was only after bad days at work that he went too far."

Takahira swallowed convulsively, unclenched his fists. "He broke her, body and soul, that night. He'd had a particularly bad day at work, getting notice that the company was failing, about to go bankrupt even. His boss was going to have to start laying people off, and if Takahira didn't increase his profit margin to five hundred yen a week, he was going to be fired.

"He knew that he couldn't do that. He pleaded and pleaded with his supervisor, but he couldn't get anything. By the time he got home, he was so wasted, he could barely walk without stumbling. But—but he could still hold a fist, and—"

Gohan enveloped his student in a strong embrace, cutting off the next words. Takahira's flat, whispery tone broke into shaking sobs. Fingers dug into Gohan's shoulder blades, drawing the fabric that covered them into tight creases. Tears that Takahira had held back for so long rushed from him now. The catharsis gave the human only enough strength to say, "She's almost dead now, Son-sensei. She's almost dead, and she still says she loves him," before he fully collapsed.

Gohan only held him tighter.

Finally, when Takahira had stopped shaking, the tears had slowed down, and his shirt was thoroughly wet, Gohan told Takahira the words that he hoped the human would never forget:

"You are stronger than him, Hideki-kun. The fact that you have tried all this time to protect your mother, even when she is half-dead, speaks volumes about your strength. Any other person would have long given up by now, but you didn't.

"Hideki-kun, you probably won't accept this for a long time, but you _have_ protected your mother. You've been there for her no matter what, you've seen her through the bad times and stayed with her through the better times. Even when you're not with her, you constantly think about her and do things that will help her.

"I think that it's very likely that your mom would have given up on life long before this if it were not for you. And then you would have been left with your father...It is possible that _she _was protecting _you_, Hideki-kun, and you just didn't know it."

Gohan smiled at his student's tear-smudged shock. Clearly Takahira had not thought of his situation this way before. "In any cause," he maintained, "if this is true, you probably helped her protect you with your strength. But even if you didn't, you should still be proud of yourself for having come so far and for so long. I know I am." He smiled again at Takahira's continued shock. "In fact," he proceeded, "and I know I'm being presumptuous, but I am going to say that I am proud of you in your father's place." He squeezed his student's shoulders affectionately.

"Son-sensei," Takahira Hideki gasped, his shell-shock causing him to squeak in an undignified way. Gohan chuckled, a warm sound, and gently tapped the open jaw.

"Better close that or you'll catch flies in it," he teased. Hideki-kun looked like he wanted to say more, as per usual, but, also as per usual, Gohan wouldn't let him.

"After you help me with Meme-chan and her father, go home. Beat your father. Realize that he wasn't worth all that hate and helplessness and other such junk that you've been carrying around, but still be happy you beat him. Take care of your mom. Got to school, meet people, and make new friends. Start a new life. All of that. But whenever you start to feel any negative emotions that you can't handle, come look for me. I'll be sure to beat you so badly you'll never want to come visit me again."

"But, Son-sensei, I still haven't learned..." Takahira started. Once more Gohan shook his head.

"You don't need to know how to split a tree with one finger to be able to beat your dad, Hideki-kun. As of now, your training with me is officially over. You just have to help me with Meme-chan and then you're free to go." Gohan gestured from his spot near Meme-chan's unmoving form, but his student didn't move.

"Son-sensei," he tried again, steeping toward Gohan with a desperate hand outreached.

"Hideki-kun. Have faith in yourself," Gohan commanded, his tone more than a little exasperated. He smiled wryly a second later, however, taking much of the sting out of his voice. "You'll do fine," he asserted firmly. "I know you will. Now come over here and hold her while I check on her father."

As Hideki-kun finally obeyed, and had Meme-chan in his arms, he felt that same burning desire to protect flare as hot as it ever had. He looked over the face half-burrowed into the crook of his elbow with care, noting the hidden beauty in the curves and in how the eyelashes framed her round eyes. He thought that if he had looked this hard at her before, given her more of a chance, he might have had more difficulty in finally leaving this village than he presently did. it was with obvious reluctance that Hideki-kun handed his charge back to his sensei—and of course his sensei noticed.

"I did have plans for you that you interrupted," Gohan commented casually. That wary look returned quickly to Hideki-kun's countenance, making Gohan laugh.

"It's nothing so bad as that," he promised his deshi. "I was originally planning for you to make friends with the villagers so that you would see that there is more to life than revenge, but you sort of 'ruined' those plans when you finally told me _why_ you wanted me to teach you. You showed me that you would never move on without first taking care of your father, but in order to do that, you had to be told that you _were _actually protecting your mom, that you _are_ worth something. Now the effects of this aren't fully sinking in yet, I see, but they will, and you'll be happy that they do."

Gohan smirked as Hideki-kun scoffed familiarly at his teacher—no, _former_ teacher. Jeez, all of this had been so sudden and so shocking, but he really did feel lighter and more hopeful, like things really would work out for him. He began to think that perhaps Son-sensei was wrong, that the effects were already sinking in. He scoffed again, but he couldn't stop the thought from intruding again and again as he shook Taito the Carpenter awake. He tried to keep it away, to reassert his old suspicious mentality, but even he knew it was a losing battle.

Gohan only watched with a inwardly knowing smile.

:-:-:-:

Note: The authoress does not know if 500 yen is a lot of money, but she hopes that her readers get the point anyway and will not make any undue fuss about the amount that she has chosen. We Americans are so ignorant of foreign cultures... (Laments)

:-:-:-:

A/n: Well, that was a nice and long chappie. I hope you're happy. (Smiles hopefully)

Aline: They should be, seeing as this chappie was much sooner than the last.

Precisely. (Places hands on hips, something Aline mirrors) So, all you lazy layabout slackers—err—dear reviewers—ahem—had best see that likkle purple/blue/blue purple button on the bottom...bottom left there, saying Go, click on it, type in a few words saying how positively spiffy this chapter was (or not, your choice), click Submit, and hope vicariously for the next one to be as quick. Savvy?

Aline: Or I'll borrow that cursed glaive again.

You will not refer to PGHMGD as "that cursed glaive" anymore, dear muse. Nor will you borrow it. Do you know why?

Aline: (Silent)

Because, dear museling, I have programmed it to attack you upon sight. It now hates you with a positive _vigor_.

Aline: Is that so? (Haughty)

And yes, I do know where my Cosmo Laser Beam Cannon is, thank you.

Aline: (Deflates) Drat.

In any case. (Sniffs disdainfully) Anyway, we finally find out _why_ Takahira wanted to learn how to defeat an enemy with a single finger! Man, what a story! But it seems like poor Hideki-kun won't learn it after all, because Gohan has sent him home with orders to have faith in himself and start a new life! Well! And Goten seems to feel neglected by his family, as they don't appear to appreciate the extraordinary opportunity he has been presented with going overseas! Well, of course Gohan appreciates it, but he does have to give his bro a stern talking to for being too flippant! Perhaps Hadyn was too much of an influence... But what is Gohan going to do to the rest of the Z-senshi for being so absent-minded toward Goten? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **lpgohanfanatic**,** Tiara Shin**, and **Twin Tails Speed** for reviewing!

That's all from here at the Madhouse. See ya next time,

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 02.01.07_


	56. Chapter the Fifty Fifth: Trauma

**Vigilante Angel**: Chapter the Fifty-fifth

Disclaimer: (Looks distastefully at statement on paper in front of her) "I, TheShadowPanther, hereby state that I am NOT Toriyama Akira..." (Taps fingers on desk) "...and therefore if I am not Toriyama-sensei, then I cannot possibly own Dragonball Z." (Suddenly crumples the paper up) Happy yet, you cursed FUNimation lawyers? (Throws paper ball at them) Meanies. (Crosses arms and pouts)

Disclaimer: I also don't own the X-men; I'm just borrowing the idea of the mutants to play with for my own benefit and fun. I'm so selfish. (Laughs evilly)

Aline: Right. (Bored)

SP: Oh, shut up. (To readers) Enjoy and review, please! (Bows)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_...He began to think that perhaps Son-sensei was wrong, that the effects were already sinking in. He scoffed again, but he couldn't stop the thought from intruding again and again as he shook Taito the Carpenter awake. He tried to keep it away, to reassert his old suspicious mentality, but even he knew it was a losing battle. _

_Gohan only watched with an inwardly knowing smile._

:-:-:-:

**Four Months Later: Fourteen Years after the Cell Games**

"So, how's Goten doing over there in America?" Osi asked, gesturing vaguely downwards to illustrate her question. Ron snorted at his sister's uncaring attitude.

Gohan leaned back in his seat before answering, "I have no idea."

"WHAT?" The Osi siblings both looked in complete surprise at the demi-Saiyan. "But you go see him every day!"

"I'm going down the Living World, sure, but not to visit otouto," Gohan explained.

"Why not?" Ron inquired, his brows furrowed in concern.

"Goten's a big guy now. He can take care of himself," Gohan said firmly. "And besides, this is an opportunity for him to make his own way alone, without me or anybody else to decide things for him."

Osi had by this time developed a cunning expression. "He made you promise to leave him alone, didn't he? Aw, look at that face," she cooed phonily at Gohan's grimace. "Poor Gohan is so sad."

"Why? This is a chance for you to get a break from that sort of thing," Ron asserted, leaning forward intently. "Believe me, Gohan, it'll do you some good."

"I don't need a break," the demi-Saiyan protested.

"Bro's right though," Osi rejoined. She eyed him. "You're looking more than a little tense." She demonstrated how much more with a wide gap between her oddly-shaped forefinger and her equally alien thumb.

"I just have a bad feeling about it," Gohan retorted. "Like something bad is going to happen to him."

"How bad is it?" inquired Ron sharply. Osi leaned forward with an equally intense expression.

"It feels like it's going to happen to Goten any minute now. As a guardian angel, I can't exactly do anything before a bad event happens, but only interfere when the incident is already in motion."

"And added to the fact that your protégé is your brother..." Osi started.

"Ouch," Ron finished. They affixed their longtime friend with twin sympathetic glances. The emotion was only sympathetic because the Osi siblings had never really been quite in the same situation with Osijun. Lucky punks.

Gohan sighed, "Yeah." He brightened marginally. "So you'll pardon me if I do indeed seem tense?"

"No, not really," the Osi siblings replied, to Gohan's nonexistent surprise. "It's just going to make us work harder at getting you to relax."

"After all, there's nothing you can do until you're needed," Ron added with a shrug. Osi agreed emphatically with a twisted gleam in her eye.

"Urgh," Gohan groaned. "Forget you two. I'm going down to the Living World now."

True to his words, Gohan forgot the Osi siblings and flashed downwards to the Living World.

:-:-:-:

"Hey, Mom," Gohan greeted Chichi just as she came into the kitchen. The demi-Saiyan had popped into the building just moments before, in the process knocking over the chairs and the table in his way. "I don't remember the table and the chairs being here before."

"Oh, I moved them, honey," Chichi informed him absently. "Do you know where my frying pan is?"

"You moved the tables? Why?" Gohan was concerned. First Chichi had been especially moody, then she had hurt Goten, and now she'd started rearranging the kitchen. He determined that now as the time to find out the meaning behind all of this. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, sweetie. I just felt like a change," Chichi tried.

"You're not going to pull that off with me, Mother. You've been hurting Goten with your blatant selfishness towards the incredible opportunity that he's gotten, and you don't even seem to notice or care. You're unusually mercurial for you, as well, AND you're calling me sweetie. You _never_ call me sweetie. Or honey. Now, out with it. _What _is going on?!"

By this time Gohan had planted himself firmly in his mother's path, the legendary Saiyan stubbornness giving his eyes a martial gleam while he stared his parent down.

Chichi blinked. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, I WON'T—" she began, raising her hand threateningly, but ineffectively, since the frying pan usually occupying it was gone.

Gohan proved how much the threat affected him. "Exactly what I mean. I'm not moving from this spot until you tell me—"

Now Gohan cut himself off. He turned and sprinted out of the door, not bothering to spare even a moment to explain his sudden haste to leave to Chichi, who was looking after him confusedly.

"COME BACK HERE, GOHAN, AND FINISH YOUR SENTENCE! I THOUGHT I TAUGHT YOU BETTER MANNERS THAN THAT! JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE DEAD...!"

Perhaps confusedly is not the right word.

Gohan, with the ease of long practice, merely ignored her. Instead he concentrated on a single speck of an above average level ki, and in his concentration, he vanished.

:-:-:-:

Standing before a long, long, _long_ building faced with opaque black glass, Gohan scowled. He had tried to break through to where Goten's ki was, but an invisible _something _had bounced him off, and quite mercilessly too. Gohan's scowl deepened.

Perhaps it was this invisible something that was keeping Goten _in_. Gohan could feel his younger brother struggling to escape, but like him, Goten was failing. Soon he would not have enough energy to fight _anything_, at the rate that Goten was expending his precious ki.

_Stop spending so much ki, bro,_ Gohan said mentally. The drop of his words into an abyss told him that their mental connection, too, was closed off. Gohan had the feeling that this closure was not at Goten's hand.

Getting even more worried, he focused intently on the building in front of him and its obstructive barrier.

"Hey! What are you doing?" jerked him out of his concentration, instead directing it only a raggedy-looking kid on a bike too small for him. The kid, a boy with oversized shirt and shorts and a cap turned backwards, seemed unaffected by Gohan's direct gaze. He merely reiterated his query in the same rude voice from earlier.

"This's my pa's building. Y'all can't stand in front of it like some bum!" The kid advanced threateningly.

"Draelon!" A girl, equally as ragged as the boy, appeared. "Y'all come back here and 'pologize to Sherri for throwing her doll!"

"Shut up, Laquinda! We gotta get ridda this guy!" Draelon shouted, pointing emphatically at Gohan, who had not moved this entire time.

As the two kids bickered and squabbled, Gohan returned his gaze to his original intention. If these were indeed the kids of the building owner, then he couldn't really risk rough-handling them, much as he wanted to for getting in his way (especially 'Draelon'). Without comment he spun on his heel and stalked away.

"Ha! Y'all thought y'all were so tough!" Draelon triumphantly yelled after him. "Y'all got scared away by little kids! Y'all're such a chicken!"

"Draelon, shh!" Laquinda commanded. "He looks really angry. Really, really, _really_ angry!"

"Like I care? I scared him off," Draelon boasted. He seized his cap and rotated it to the side, then struck a pose that to Gohan, looking over his shoulder, was ridiculous. "I'm phat, baby. I can do anythin'!"

"What_ever_," was Laquinda's scornful response. "Let's just go before—"

Gohan rounded the corner then, and Laquinda's voice was blocked off. Rolling his eyes, he checked to make sure that he was alone in the alley. Seeing that he was (well, except for a sleeping homeless person), he bent his knees as far as they could go, then sprang up with a tremendous force into the sky.

He doubted anyone would bother him on the roof.

He flashed by dozens upon dozens of black-faced windows, all the same shape, all the same thickness, and all the same quality. Gohan wondered how these Americans could stand looking at the same thing over and over again—it would drive him insane. Back in Japan, the architecture was at least visually engaging, not these towering and imposing monoliths.

Well, no matter. After he broke Goten out of this obsidian-featured prison, he was going to make sure they both stayed away from any skyscrapers of this sort. Maybe, if Goten wanted it, they might stay away from America entirely.

He finally reached the roof; he had to whistle appreciatively at the height he had attained. Skyscrapers clearly were America's strong point in architecture.

He touched base with the roof of the building with a sigh. Looking right and left around him to double-check that he was alone, he nevertheless decided that a sweep with his ki radar would be better. That, too, gave him some relief, though he would potentially have to watch out for those two kis moving about not very far below his feet, about two floors, he estimated.

With that in mind, he settled into a semi-comfortable lotus position. Forest green ki magic reverberated out of him, nearly bouncing in its excitement at being summoned forth. It took up eagerly the task of shielding its Saiyan from any intruder, as well as making him invisible to as many people as possible. Gohan, chuckling at the zealousness of the forest green magic, mentally noted to Hageshiijutsu that he needed to use it more.

Now that he was relatively more secure in his position than before, the demi-Saiyan took a deep breath. His sense of Goten trapped behind the barrier returned slowly, a result, he suspected of his shield. Concentrating fiercely upon the barrier which refused to let itself be seen, he had an idea. His ki magic agreed readily, though did warn him not to overuse the magic too much at once (contrary to its enthusiastic nature of moments before).

He promised to go slowly.

Grasping a tiny tendril of the ki magic, he reached out to the barrier. The tendril instantly began scrambling over it, looking plant-like for any holes or imperfections to grow through; Gohan didn't have to wait long before it surged delightedly. The demi-Saiyan told it to proceed carefully and to retreat if the situation became too hazardous to handle. He had to be firm with the quivering excitedly tendril; finally, it agreed, though a trifle sulkily.

With the questing tendril, Gohan found that the barrier was extremely thick, behaved almost like steel, and could not seem to be able to keep him out for all its strength and thickness. It was also whiny, threatening to inform its master if the intruders didn't leave right away.

Both Gohan and his ki magic ignored it, sparing only a moment to comment absently, You can bring your master if you wish. He or she will not be able to stop me.

Using the barrier's moment of shock, Gohan's magic swelled again through the imperfection, finally breaking through much to its pleasure. Zoning in on its target, its reason for breaking through the barrier, it connected with the struggling Goten and made him scream.

_Calm down, squirt! _Gohan commanded. _What's the matter with you? _

_G-Gohan?_ came the timid answer.

_Yes,_ Gohan responded soothingly. _Who else would it be?_

_Bro, you have to get out of here! If they find you, you'll be trapped too!_ Goten yelled. Gohan frowned, then had to pay attention to something Hageshii wanted him to know.

_Squirt, thanks for the warning,_ he started. _But you're my protégé. I have to get you out of this any way I can. So get ready. _

_Bro!_ Goten called, but Gohan was already retreating, withdrawing his ki magic carefully from the barrier. _Big bro, don't leave me! _Goten cried, terror overwhelming him. _I don't want to be alone after all!_

_Don't worry! _Gohan tried to reassure him, hating being so unsure of why his little brother was so afraid. _I'm always with you! Just remember your blue half! _

_What?_ Goten shouted. Gohan only barely heard it; he couldn't have acted upon it anyway even if he had registered the query. He was busy with trying to upkeep his ki magic shields, which were in danger of falling.

_Hageshii, are you ready?_ strained Gohan. _I don't think I can hold them off with just the amount I already have up. _

_Why don't you put some more in, then?_ Hageshii screamed back.

_Because even my ki magic has a limit on how much can be taken out at once without an incantation! I'm rapidly getting there, I know I don't have the time for a proper invocation, and I don't want to burn myself out! So come on, help me! _

PHLOWMPF! With a spin kick and a clearing blast of energy, Gohan leapt up to face whomever it was pressuring him so. He crouched warily, Hageshii reassuringly solid in his hands, and eyed the strange gizmos floating in midair. Two humans stood beyond the gadgets, holding in callused fingers black squares radiating a faint aura.

Were the floating devices what had attacked his shields? He admitted that without incanting, the shields were not as strong as they usually were, but even unrecognizable implements such as these should not have been able to cause him such trouble.

Or could they? He examined them on a closer level, noting from his careful distance that a faint ki arose from these gizmos that was very similar to another ki he'd seen only minutes earlier. Shifting his gaze to the humans, who seemed frozen, Gohan confirmed that the kis from the black objects in the humans' grasp matched the floating masses.

So they were related. But how? It was not safe to simply assume that the humans held the remote control devices of the flying gizmos. He would bet his halo on those actually being summoners of more gadgets like the ones he faced.

He pondered on why the gadgets weren't attacking him. Were they based on movement? Energy expenditure? Or something else, a variable unknown to him? It was likely to be the second thought, the energy expenditure, because the iron balls (or what looked like iron balls) had tried to bludgeon him to death when he had had his shields up.

Testing, he moved his hand out to the side and snapped his fingers. The humans tensed, watching him, but the globes did nothing other than briefly radiate more ki, a warning, he supposed, to those who could sense it. He withdrew his limb, replaced it on Hageshii, and elevated his ki level slightly. Instantly the globes buzzed menacingly and flew toward him; he ducked them easily and watched warily as they circled back to their original positions.

He attacked without warning, dashing through the balls and to the humans in the blink of an eye. He smashed the squares in the humans' hands with Hageshii (who howled with delight inside Gohan's head); the humans swore loudly and dropped the mangled black squares, instead nursing their hands (Gohan had neglected to avoid hitting _them_ with Hageshii). But Gohan would only know of the effects of his attack upon the humans later; right at the moment he was too busy dancing with the deadly devices for his life.

He whirled and swirled, swung and ducked, stood his guard and ran. He hit the devices many times with Hageshii, but no matter how mutilated they were, the balls just kept on coming. He ducked the balls an umpteenth time, got hit by an idea as he saw lights light up and down on different parts of the balls.

Swinging a final time, he suddenly clamped down on his energy so hard he almost fell flat on his face. The balls halted, too, and whirred, but contrary to Gohan's expectations, they remained floating.

"Well done, intruder. You've lasted longer against my Hoverbots than any of the other mutants we've encountered."

Gohan, unsurprised by the new voice, switched his attention briefly from the balls to the new enemy. His gaze lasted longer than he meant it to, for not only was there a chocolate-skinned man with a wide forehead in a flattering blue suit, but two familiar kids in raggedy oversized clothes stood with him.

Draelon was the first to return Gohan's recognition; his eyes widened as he pointed insolently at the demi-Saiyan.

"You! I thought I scared y'all off! Man," the kid spat, "Don't ya bad guys _eva_ give up?"

"Draelon," the newcomer said in a commanding tone, "_this _is who you met?"

"Yeah, Pa," Draelon answered, his rude behavior disappearing in the face of the grown-up's stern countenance. "He don't look so tough. I thought I could—"

"_Never_ assume anyone is not dangerous. I thought I taught you better than that." It was clear that Draelon's father was _very_ disappointed.

"Y'all did, Pa," Draelon responded, clearly panicking. "I just—"

"Look! He's jumping!" Laquinda screamed, pointing wildly at the edge of the roof. Sure enough, Gohan's body could be seen plummeting over the brink into the wide, wide sky, rapidly disappearing from sight as he fell downwards.

The Hoverbots instantly streaked after him, emitting a high drone as they raced to keep up with Gohan's fleeing energy.

Draelon's father looked at the spot where the mutant had so elegantly fought the Hoverbots. Around him, his guards rushed to the edge to stare mindlessly over it, no doubt thinking the intruder crazy to commit suicide to prevent from being caught.

"Shame," the coffee-skinned man murmured, sliding his hands into his pockets. "He had such potential for the trendbreaker, too."

He sighed. "Ah well. He will meet his end now, whether from the Hoverbots or the ground as he splats against it." He chuckled amusedly. "I wonder what Marisa would have said about that."

He turned and walked away, murmuring something about having other mutants to drain. Meanwhile, Gohan, having reached the terminal velocity of his fall, had dampened his ki. Instead he latched his fingers together, turned over onto his back in midair so that he could face the Hoverbots (so now he fell head-first and had his hands up to his face while on his back), and began to chant.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten," he incanted. The Bots, which had fallen behind slightly, sped up again, lights blinking threateningly like the eyes of some monster. They were still too far from Gohan to cause him to really worry about them; besides, they were a part of his plan.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus tirenaten!" he repeated, keeping an eye on how fast he was falling. He'd be approaching the floor where Goten was soon...

He could feel that Goten had finally cottoned on; from behind the barrier, the ki magic was not registered by the Hoverbots, which was perfectly fine with Gohan. He'd finish them off soon enough. Hopefully.

He had time for three more incantations before he arrived at the next stage of his plan, literally. Goten by this time had quite a huge resource of ki magic waiting to be unleashed, Gohan was pleased to sense; now he only needed to time this right and hope Goten did too.

He flashed by the window Goten was hidden by and thought he sensed a brief wave of recognition. Smiling grimly, Gohan mentally cried farewell to the gaining Hoverbots; then, spreading his fingers apart, he pointing two of his left fingers to the window he'd passed only a second ago.

"Leoclinis brigandos tilanus _tirenaten_!" he bellowed. The ki magic sphere he'd collected at the top of his fingers burst forth and sailed rapidly to its destination. As he'd hoped, the Hoverbots tracked the ki magic instead of him (since technically the sphere had a lot more ki than his falling body did at the moment). The Bots deviated from their path to head off the ki magic, but the conjured sphere curved at the last instant before collision and burst through the opaque glass instead.

Gohan felt, through his work to turn his body around for landing, Goten's ki magic shoot out as well. His sphere, which had kept going after shattering the obsidian glass, hit the barrier two seconds before Goten's did. Though the barrier held under both of the attacks, the crash of the Hoverbots into it was the straw that broke the camel's back.

All the windows of the building blew apart with the barrier's demise. A scream of "GOHAN!" blitzed the air as a growing boy's body hurled out of its prison and shot downwards. Gohan opened his arms wide, steadying his footing in preparation, and only grunted once as his brother hit him solidly.

"Hey, bro! Did I come in time?" Gohan inquired cheerfully, as if the grim persona that had occupied him only moments earlier had never existed.

Goten mumbled something incomprehensible (or incomprehensible for humans) and slid to his feet. Gohan heard it and sighed, carding his hand through the demi-Saiyan's soothingly. "It's all right, Goten. It's over. Let's get out of here."

"We have to go by Alyssa's house first," Goten informed him. "Tell her that I'm all right."

"Rooming with a girl, were you?" Gohan teased, trying to lighten the mood, but Goten refused to participate. Gohan sighed again, nodded. "All right. I trust you know where to go?"

"I know where her ki is," Goten said somberly. He looked so tired and worn out and traumatized that Gohan decided to drop any attempts at cheering him up altogether. Instead he placed his hands on the two shaking shoulders and made Goten face him.

"We'll talk about this later, squirt, after you get some sleep and food. Food first, though; you've spent a lot of energy. After the food and sleep, we'll decide where to go from here. Okay?"

Goten nodded, relief on his features, then leaned forward. "Thanks, niisan. I don't know where I'd be now if it weren't for you. I'm not just talking about _there_." There was no need to elaborate on where _there_ was. Gohan smiled reassuringly as tears began to leak energetically from Goten's eyes.

"I know what you're trying to say, bro. Don't worry about where you'd have been, because you're here right now in front of me and about to break down," he observed.

Goten sniffed valiantly, but the breakdown Gohan mentioned refused to let him go.

"It's all right," Gohan said gently. "I'm here now." That was all Goten needed. The fourteen-year-old demi-Saiyan simply fell into his brother's arms, while all around them people gathered, staring awed at the sight of the broken building and the black glass littered everywhere.

:-:-:-:

A/n: No, the X-men are NOT making a cameo appearance. I'm just borrowing the idea of the mutants to play with for my own benefit, as the disclaimer says. So don't sue me. Please?

Poor Goten-kun! You vile Americans, how dare you kidnap our second-favorite demi-Saiyan and abuse him in such a way! But how was Goten abused? How long exactly was Goten in the control of Draelon's father and his minions before Gohan knew something was wrong? And what is up with Chichi? She's totally changing the face of everything, as if Gohan didn't have enough to worry about! Find out what Gohan is going to do about all of this, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **lpgohanfanatic**,** Twin Tails Speed**, and** Tiara Shin **for reviewing. Arigatou!I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

That's all from this quarter, so it's sayonara! Thanks for reading and review!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 03.22.07_


	57. Chapter the Fifty Sixth: Revenge

**Vigilante Angel: **Chapter the Fifty-sixth

Disclaimer: My OCs are probably the only things, along with the plot and Gohan's powers such as ki magic, that belong to me. Even if you were to sue me, though, you would just get a dog with arthritis in her back legs who is nevertheless confused and _very _angry. Oops.

A/n: Arrrrgh! This chapter is so slow! The only good action happens halfway into the chapter. Ugh!

Aline: It's your fault for wanting to extend this mini-series you know.

But you're the one who said Goten would want revenge!

Aline: No, YOU'RE the one who suggested that. I would _never_ go so far with such an absurd plot idea.

Ah, but _you're_ the one who gave me the idea of Goten being kidnapped in the first place. _I'm_ just following Goten's natural reaction to such an action.

Aline: And thus we get to the point: _I_ didn't suggest the revenge notion.

(Blinks) What?

Aline: (To readers) Enjoy the chapter. It was h-e-double toothpicks for SP to right, to my utter amusement. (Evil laugh)

(Pulls out Cosmo Laser Beam Cannon behind muse's back) Right. That's it! That's enough abuse from you!

Aline: (Whirls around, sees Cannon, whirls back around and begins running)

That's right! Take that! (Laughs insanely, driven mad by Aline's incessant poking) Ha! Hah! Hah! Hah! HAAH!

Oh, and the chapter's long. Just so you know.

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

"_It's all right," Gohan said gently. "I'm here now." That was all Goten needed. The fourteen-year-old demi-Saiyan simply fell into his brother's arms, while all around them people gathered, staring awed at the sight of the broken building and the black glass littered everywhere. _

:-:-:-:

**Same Time**

Goten would tell Gohan later that during his short stay at the Nasser Trendline Corporation his mind had been invaded again and again, by some outside source that felt human but didn't act it. He had been drained of enough energy to make accessing his Super Saiyan Two level impossible, and he had spent more in trying to get out of the barrier.

The barrier had been put up against him to keep him in, but it had enclosed him in such a small space that he feared he now had claustrophobia, to put it mildly. The barrier was also the work of whoever kept "raping his mind" (to use Goten's bitter words); the feel of the barrier was the same as the raper. Gohan would reinforce the theory when he suddenly remembered that the barrier had threatened to get its master.

"Now that I think about it," Gohan would say thoughtfully, "Why _didn't _it? We were in long enough to warrant an attack."

Goten wouldn't have an answer for that. He would add that he wasn't the only one to be "exploited" in such a way; there were other humans, called "mutants" in Goten's predicament.

"I'm not surprised at that, squirt," Gohan would say somberly. "I only wish there was something we could do for them."

"There may be," Goten would mutter under his breath. Gohan would shoot him a look, but Goten only would turn away with a mulish look in his eye. Gohan nonetheless would decide to keep an eye on his brother and ready a getaway plan.

At the moment, however, Gohan was sitting on the roof of a pretty cottage-like house, observing the behavioral patterns of his brother and charged as he waited on said cottage-like house's porch. Goten, though exhausted, still stood proudly independent of any help or outside power. Gohan felt pride bubbling up deep inside his heart and a smile he didn't suppress form on his face. He looked away so that his brother wouldn't see and be embarrassed, potentially, or accuse him of slacking off on his job of bodyguard.

"Alyssa?" he heard Goten's confused voice ask. Gohan chuckled as a squeal sounded and his brother's voice choked. From his vantage point he could vaguely see the top of a brown head and arms the color of sepia. Goten had told him that his host was Pakistani, but to Gohan, "Al" looked more Indian then Pakistani. It didn't really matter either way, but it _was_ curious.

"How did you change your appearance like that?" Goten inquired incredulously. The girl who had stepped back from hugging her guest (who looked disturbingly comfortable with all the physical contact) flicked back her brown hair.

"I food colored my body lotion so that it was brown, and dyed my hair this color. What do you think?" Alyssa's voice was clear and powerful, instantly raising the hackles on Gohan's neck. There was something alien about such a voice, something that spoke of a power beyond average human comprehension.

"I think it's shocking," Goten said bluntly. "Listen, it's been a long day. Before you start the Spanish Inquisition, could you give me food, lots of it, and my futon for an hour or two? I'm so exhausted I can barely walk."

"Sure!" Alyssa immediately hustled Goten into the house, calling for her mother in that voice that Gohan easily heard. He breathed a sigh and shook his head. Would things _ever _stop complicating themselves?

Leaving that rhetorical question for later meditation, Gohan shifted his position to follow that of his brother's. From the _clink!_ of dishes against cabinet doors floating out of the window beneath him, Goten was well on his way to getting the nourishment he so badly needed. Relieved, Gohan then focused on the other matter of concern to him.

What was it about Alyssa that so took him off guard? Gohan wondered. Her ki could possibly give him answers, he thought, now to figure out which one was hers.

The two kis within, though they were very similar, were also drastically different. One of them had all the trademarks of a human, with an added tinge to it that old its owner was diseased. The other, and he suspected that this was Alyssa's, was an alien ki that originally had been human. But now it was so changed, so mutated, that it was safe to say it was very possible—

"Aahh…" Goten said below him. Gohan smiled slightly as he felt his younger brother radiate satisfaction and fullness. Now that his brother was full, sleepiness likely wanted to overtake him. He smiled again when Goten reached out to him for a reassuring touch from him; he even added, semi-solemnly, _I'm here. Don't worry._

Goten was too sleepy to notice the affection in the other half of Gohan's tone, or else he might have been embarrassed. Instead the youngest demi-Saiyan mentally nodded, already slipping off to la-la land, and turned away as Alyssa's strange ki skipped into the room.

The strange powerful voice the belonged to Alyssa assured Goten that his futon was ready and waiting. Her mother had gone out to the grocery store to buy—

Whatever it was that Alyssa's mother wanted to buy, Gohan didn't hear. He had left behind the roof of the house upon hearing that the parent had left the building, as in five seconds ago. Moving at high speed, Gohan located the same ki that he had sensed earlier, that human energy with the diseased hue. It currently was driving a car (what looked to be a Subaru) and heading towards a food market in a strip mall. Eyes narrowed suspiciously, he kept track of where the ki was heading.

It was a regal brown-colored queen who stepped out of the Subaru in front of the grocery store. She was dressed simply in a hooded sweatshirt and sweatpants, but he air was one of dignity, not necessarily condescension, that set her apart.

At the moment, she was also weary, judging from the black shadows under her eyes, but it could be the general expression her hooded eyelids gave her anyway. Her features were strangely familiar to Gohan, as if he'd seen them somewhere before just recently, a notation he filed away in his mind for later inspection.

Gohan watched as the lady went into the store and shopped, but she didn't do anything out of the ordinary. The demi-Saiyan didn't know what he'd been expecting, but, he mused as he flew back, there was just something about her that said she knew more than she let on.

He preceded the ki on the drive home, the Subaru stuffed with brown paper bags of groceries, and was settling again on the roof far before the car turned into the driveway. Gohan again had ki magic to make him invisible, but not as much as on the roof of that skyscraper—he had learned his lesson after all, and his ki magic was a little sore after all yesterday's activity.

However, it seemed that even that little usage was enough to subconsciously drive Alyssa crazy, from the flickering of her ki, so as soon as he safely could, he ceased using ki magic entirely.

Goten woke up not long after Alyssa's mother returned home, refreshed to the point where he was only fatigued, not exhausted, and could think more clearly.

This was a good thing, because Alyssa's Spanish Inquisition was anxious to descend upon him.

"Where were you?" was the first question she asked. Goten's answer was a terse "Nasser Trendline Corporation, or one of their holding cells."

A quick gasp was all Gohan needed to figure out that Alyssa did indeed know the implications of Goten's answer. Goten apparently caught on, too, for his ki radiated sudden alertness.

Alyssa's voice trembled as she asked her next query. "Were you hurt there?"

Goten took time to deliberate this one; obviously he had decided to test his host. "Yes," he finally said, but quickly added, "Why do you ask?"

Alyssa, too, hesitated, before pleading her guest to let her answer that later, much to Gohan's suspicion. Goten reluctantly relented, but even he must have noticed that her ki practically shrieked her fear. On the other hand, her mother's ki was so infused with anger, that it was almost rising in power. Gohan had known that rage was almost as beneficial for humans as it was for Saiyans, but he had not encountered this in a non-fighter before. It was very interesting.

"Who…how did you get into that company, especially one of its holding cells? You didn't get in trouble with their security guards, did you?"

Alyssa was smart, as she obviously demonstrated with the phrasing of her last question. But Goten was smart, too, and what's more, he was suspicious, on guard. He wasn't about to give anything _too_ obvious away now.

"_I_ didn't get into trouble with the security guards. _They_ got into trouble with _me_," Goten snorted. Gohan could feel Alyssa's confusion, dread, and fear even through the shingles holding up the soles of his feet, while "Al's" mother emitted a dawning, sick comprehension.

"What do you mean?" Alyssa's voice was small and nervous, no longer powerful, as if she were afraid of Goten right about now. Gohan, noticing why, sent a mental message down to his brother to tone his emotions down a bit. Goten sighed and tried to comply.

"I mean that they tried to kidnap me," he instead said curtly. Alyssa and her mother gasped as one, even as Gohan told his brother ruefully, _I don't think that's precisely what I meant, bro._ The youngest demi-Saiyan sent him a mental shrug of uncaring while Alyssa's mother rushed forward, presumably to check up on Goten. Gohan nevertheless tensed.

"Tired to kidnap you?" floated out of the window Gohan sat on top of. Goten assumedly nodded, then added, almost nonchalantly, "They had to knock me out with this foul-smelling cloth before I'd go down."

_So _that's _how they managed to get you,_ Gohan commented. It's not easy to get a Saiyan down, after all. _Punks._

"When I woke up, I was in this incredibly ugly-looking cage along with a bunch of others with people in them, and these people were so afraid, so full of hate—" Goten's voice cracked as he struggled for the right words to express his feelings.

Gohan himself had to calm himself down, try to control the rage and utter helplessness he felt as Goten described the situation at that skyscraper, Nasser Trendline Corporation. He wanted to just go to the building and blast it and its owner into the seventh HFIL so badly, but—

He made himself stay and hear out the rest of Goten's explanation, garnering in the process the chocolate-skinned man's name: Donovan Nasser (gasps of fear told him that both Alyssa and her mother recognized the name). His little brother carefully concealed Gohan's own participation in his rescue, instead somehow implying that he had escaped by pushing relentlessly against the barrier (which he'd been moved to after being drained of the additional energy SS2 granted).

Silence pervaded for a while before Alyssa (or her mother) cleared her throat. "Um, Goten, you wanted to know _why_ I was asking you all these questions? Well—" She seemed to cut herself off, but Gohan heard the scratching of pen on paper. She was writing her answer instead of saying it, meaning it was something that she didn't want any untrustworthy persons such as himself to hear—

_She's a mutant! _Goten's surprised mental yell shocked him. Gohan reeled, his suspicions about Alyssa coming true in a way he had not entirely expected. If this was true, then the reactions to Goten's explanation were justified—entirely too much so. Gohan had seen for himself what the Nasser Corporation did to people they thought were mutants. And Goten was strong; what did this do to people who didn't have nearly so much strength?

He felt sick.

:-:-:-:

After Goten's host had cried herself out in Goten's worried embrace (the demi-Saiyan had immediately reached out the distressed teenager after the revelation), the atmosphere in the cottage-like house had become much easier. It was during this time that Goten privately told Gohan about being mind-raped and drained of his energy, and muttered about a way to rescue the mutants still trapped at Nasser. Gohan quickly thought up a getaway plan, hoped it would work, and stood guard over his brother every second of the day, even when everyone else was asleep. He was especially vigilant at this time, for he felt sure that this was when Goten would sneak out and implement his plan.

His vigilance was in vain, but he was not in the least sleepy or tired the next morning—being dead tended to liberate a spirit from necessities such as sleeping. Food, on the other hand, Gohan needed desperately, but even this did not prompt him to give up his guard of his brother.

Imagine his gratitude when Goten silently laid out what amounted to a feast on the windowsill of the kitchen window. It quickly disappeared, this feast, and twenty sparkly-clean plates returned with no evidence that they had had food on their surfaces at all.

It was after Gohan was done that the action began. As soon as Alyssa trotted back upstairs to change for school, Goten quietly gathered all of his things, stuffed it into his luggage, and passed the luggage up to his brother. Gohan, in turn, took a few precious seconds to Instant Transmit to Mt. Paoz, leave the luggage in Goten's room and IT back to catch Goten successfully evade Alyssa's mother and head outside. Together the two flew silently back to Nasser Corporation, its skyscraper evident by the neon sign it sported.

"Now, you're sure about this, right?" Gohan questioned, his black eyes sharp as he looked upon the building that still missed its windows. Within it, workers sat at their cubicles, some rigidly, others looking interestedly out into the fresh air beyond the temporary barriers set up for their safety, while even more works scurried about, ant-like in their intensity. From what Gohan could see, the debris from the implosion yesterday had mostly been cleaned up; a huge mound of sparkling ebon glass now waited to be carted away.

"Yes," Goten replied curtly, eyes trained away from his brother. Gohan sighed, gestured for Goten to go ahead. "I'll keep an eye on you from afar until you need me, okay?"

"'K," Goten said absently. In the next moment, a slipstream of gold replaced Goten's position. Gohan watched Goten accelerate to large velocities for a while, then followed suit at a much slower rate.

By the time the guardian angel arrived at Nasser Trendline Corporation, Goten had already bulldozed through, having landed at one of the empty windows and scared the living daylights out of the employees. It was easy to track his brother's path, for it was marked by wide-eyed or annoyed people and strewn papers—Goten in an angry rush was not the most considerate of people.

Gohan picked up where he was allowed, and wandered off where people shrank from him, thinking he was another mutant. How both wrong and right they were.

He heard a distant scream when he approached the elevators—Goten must have too, judging from the abrupt one hundred and forty degree spiral Goten's trail of rumple people and thrown up papers took. Gohan nonchalantly stepped through the chaos and the panic as smooth as smooth could be. His brother had not gotten into any danger yet, so he was biding his time. There were some things his younger brother needed to do alone.

He reached the elevators and stepped casually into the one next to the one his brother had systematically destroyed the doors of. He didn't know how his brother knew where he was going, not if he'd been drugged before he came in, but he figured Goten had his ways.

He got out of the elevator onto the floor with his brother's ki on it and strolled without a seeming care through more destruction and disorder. Desks were turned over, lamps were smashed (throwing the room into dim shadows), and cubicle walls torn down. There were no laborers around on this floor, however, which only reinforced the idea that this was the floor of questionable reputation (even with the entrance seeming _exactly_ the floor he'd just left).

Perhaps _this_ was where the mutants were, though there was no sight of the cages Goten had described. This was hardly cause for worry, however, since mutant cages were hardly the sort of matter to leave out for average humans to see, especially one's own employees.

Gohan did pick up his pace, now that he was closer to the apparent scene of Goten's revolution. He had a feeling—

"Aaarrrgh!" Goten yelled no so very far from in front of him. Gohan instantly broke into a run, his features intent and ki charged for action.

"_Where_ _are all the mutants?!_"

Gohan stopped in his tracks at the yell, sliding to a halt before a singular light-filled doorway. He stepped up cautiously to peek through it, seeing only Goten, angry and vengeful, glaring at the room he stood in. But that was the problem: _Only_ Goten stood there. There were cages, yes, Gohan noted carefully, but there were no people, suffering and bewildered, stuffed into their metal innards. There may have been operating tables in the room adjoining the cramped room, but there were no ethically-challenged monsters of human scientists waiting menacingly behind them. In fact, there wasn't _anybody_ at all.

Gohan stiffened and withdrew further into the relative safety of the corners in the dimmed room, turning to face behind him. He did not have to wait long before the object of his wait arrived, stepping out of yet another elevator. Her face was both terrified and determined, as if she was determined to meet whatever she was afraid of head on and without faltering.

She ran forward and past him without seeming to notice the bedlam that had befallen the floor. She darted into the light-filled room with Goten and followed him into the adjoining room, where she caught his arm urgently.

Though the message was not intended for him, Gohan could hear the girl as clear as day, her mental voice was so loud:

_You gotta get out of here! This is a trap, meant for you to be recaptured by Nasser! Don't go any further! _

Goten, who had whirled around angrily, now stood stock still with shock at the figure tugging anxiously at his arm. Gohan decided to help the girl out and gave a not-so-gentle tap to his brother's mind.

_She's right. I can feel that Nasser's ki coming up,_ he reported. Goten growled, but shook off is rescuer's hand and set off for the elevators instead. _I don't know who you are or where you came from_, the fourteen-year-old hissed, _but—_

_Quiet!_ the girl commanded, touching Goten's arm again lightly, automatically. _There's someone here._ She suspiciously scanned the room; unfortunately for her, she didn't think to look right beside her. Goten, grumpy still, didn't do his rescuer the favor of pointing out the barely discernible form of his own brother in the corner.

_Let's go_, the girl ordered after a while, apparently deciding to use the moment as best as she could. She was still broadcasting, though, so to the mind used to telepathic communication, the girl gave away the very advantage she sought. Gohan snorted to himself, then quickly re-stilled in his sanctuary as the girl's head shot up again. Goten ignored the both of them, instead sauntering over to the elevators and impatiently pressing the down arrow.

"Darn elevators," Goten grumbled. "Always taking too long." The demi-Saiyan disregarded the panicked "shh!" of his rescuer with ease.

In a short time that seemed to take forever, as it always does, the elevators arrived. But they did not bring what the three previous inhabitants of the room wanted to see.

"Crud!" the girl hissed loudly, stepping back in terror. The gray-suited men in the elevator instantly fanned out into a semi-circle around her, trapping her and Goten but excluding Gohan in his corner. Goten could easily have broken out of the circle, but he was only wary, eyeing the guards with well-concealed alertness.

The man was left to step out of the elevator was smirking, was chocolate-skinned, and was focused entirely upon the girl standing terrified before him. Donovan Nasser smiled slowly, flashing evenly white teeth, like a cat digesting a canary. He said:

"Welcome back, Alyssa. I haven't seen you in nearly a year. You've grown, daughter mine."

Silence descended upon the room, the expectant air broken only by the girl's—now revealed as Alyssa—panicked whimpers. Goten stared in shock as his rescuer's appearance rapidly fluctuated: Her skin turned all sorts of different colors, including blue, her eyes flashed every hue imaginable, and her hair lengthened, shortened, and shifted the colors of the rainbow. Finally, however, it settled into the look that Alyssa had had when Goten returned to her home.

"Much better," Donovan approved, his eyes glinting. "You look so beautiful," he added wistfully, reaching out a hand almost unknowingly towards her. "Just like Marisa."

Alyssa's breath hitched alarmingly and she scuttled back fearfully. At the same time, Goten moved in, eyes flashing, and put himself squarely between Nasser and his American host. "Lay a finger on her and I won't show any mercy," he snarled, raising his clenched fists where they could be seen.

Nasser only chuckled. "A protective one. My daughter certainly knows how to pick her friends." He straightened up. "And yet it is because of you, the fact that you fell so neatly for my trap that she is here and trembling enough to shake this building down."

"What?" Goten nearly shouted, taken aback. "What the—what are you talking about?"

Nasser chuckled again. He now appeared intimidating, powerful, and master of all things beyond human ken. He looked like the devil.

"It was on my orders that you were kidnapped. On _my_ orders that you were invaded mentally. Not only did my mutant seek information on how to imprison you, but he also implanted false information in your brain, leading you to think that there were mutants here in the same plight as you and suffering far worse than you did. I even ordered Onyx to supply you with the floor number of my little trap, in hopes you would return for vengeance."

"I did not count on you killing my mutant with the mental backlash of destroying his barrier, nor for you to be rescued by another mutant," Donovan frowned, "I would have let you go anyway, but your escape by your own power worked out more perfectly for me.

"Luckily I was able to carry out the rest of my plan without Onyx, especially as you returned in the highest of rages, my daughter following. No doubt she wanted to rescue you from being captured again." The man took a step forward. "Thank you for bringing my daughter to me," he said almost laughingly. "But now I must ask you to go, leaving my Alyssa with me where she belongs."

"Donovan Nasser, I can't believe you," a new voice rang out, startling in its loudness next to Nasser's ominous whisper. "I knew you were ruthless, but I didn't think you would stoop so far in your mind games as to come to _this_."

The entire tableau shifted to look at the newcomer, who had her arms crossed and a look of disgust settled on her features. Gohan rather thought disdain was better for that queenly countenance, but it was her emotion and her call.

"Ah, Marisa," Donovan greeted smoothly, another smile gracing _his_ features. "I wondered if you would come."

Alyssa's mother eyed Donovan haughtily, disdain _now_ crossing her face. Though she was in another pair of sweatshirt and sweatpants, Marisa had incalculably more grace and dignity than her assumed ex-husband, who abruptly looked cheap and gaudy in his fancy suit. (Don't we all wish.)

"Alyssa, honey, we're going," she said to her daughter instead of replying to Donovan. "I have no more business here other than retrieving you."

"Just a moment, Marisa. Aren't you going to ask after our other children that you left with me? Don't you care about them?"

At a snap of his fingers, a guard opened a door that shouldn't have been where it was. Out of it tumbled the graceless forms of Draelon and Laquinda—

"Ma! Mommy!" cried the pile at the guard's feet. Instantly the two leapt up and headed for Marisa, who stood frozen and with a pained look upon her face.

A blast of color and sound later, Gohan had snatched up both Alyssa and Marisa in his grasp and bounded towards the elevator. Goten, who of course had been able to see Gohan move, was already within one, and pressing the button the close the doors. Gohan leapt within the machine, deposited his bundles of cloth and flesh onto the floor, and turned back to the elevator front.

He had to flick two guards in the face to discourage them from attack before the doors closed. In his other hand he calmly collected the surprisingly accurate bullets the smarter guards tried to plug him with, dropping them with a snort once the elevator began moving down.

He was glad to be away from that Nasser dude-san. The human was clearly diabolical. Or desperate. He had clearly wanted to take Alyssa and her mother back, perhaps undo whatever it was that had driven them apart in the first place. But to go to such lengths?

Behind him, he could hear Goten talking to the women he'd saved, telling them that although Gohan was his brother, he was totally unlike him in that he liked to be dramatic in his entrances and exits. Gohan laughed, the unexpected noise bouncing around the cramped quarters of the elevator, and retorted, "If I like to make an entrance, it's because of you, squirt, and the liking for pranks you've instilled into me."

Satisfied that nothing overly untoward was going to happen, Gohan turned towards his brother's American hosts. Bending down to their level (since they had not moved from where he had put them), he stuck a hand out and began to introduce himself in accented English.

"I'm Gohan Son, and I'm Goten's older brother."

:-:-:-:

A/n: Argh. Days it took me to write this. _Days_. I spent most of spring break writing this, when I should have been doing review for my AP Chemistry class. (Moans)

Aline: (Snarks silently behind authoress' back)

Now I have one day left. I'm so weak willed. (Self-pitying)

Aline: Oh, shut up. Enough of this self-pity business. Go write more VA in your new journal.

(Reaches out for the trigger of the Cosmo Laser Beam Cannon, which is still with her) _**COSMO LASER BEAM CANNON!**_

Aline: (Shrieks) NO! (Takes off running)

Ahh, peace and quiet. It never lasts long enough. (Sighs contentedly)

So the entire thing was a _trap_?! What the heck?! All of this was a _trap_ to bring Alyssa back to her Donovan? And what is this about Donovan being Alyssa's _father_?! After kidnapping Goten and making him think Nasser was torturing mutants, it turns out it was just a _ploy_? Goten has _got _to be mad. (Shudders) And then Donovan tried to trick Marisa into staying by bringing out Draelon and Laquinda, but Gohan rescued both Marisa and Alyssa and putting them into the elevator. For what reasons would Donovan go to such lengths, as Gohan asked, and will Marisa and Alyssa ever forgive him, much less Goten? Find out, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **Tiara Shin**, **Twin Tails Speed**,and **lpgohanfanatic** for reviewing. You guys rock my world! (Bows)

This is the last I'll be able to post in a long while. Tomorrow I go back to school and start preparing for my AP exams. Wish me luck guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, now review please so that I know you're out there!

Sayonara!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 04.01.07_

(Happy April Fool's!)


	58. Chapter the Fifty Seventh: Angst

**Vigilante Angel:** Chapter the Fifty-seventh

Disclaimer: Can I say I'm Toriyama-sensei if I'm not a manga-ka? No, I didn't think so either. Oops! (I also don't own X-men or the concepts of mutants.)

A/n: Warning: This is an emotionally heavy chapter. Expect long philosophical discussions, emotional breakdowns, tears, and other such lovely concepts that angst gives us. So happy.

Aline: (Snorts)

Don't you complain, Aline. This is _your_ area.

Aline: I know. That's why I'm wondering how I _ever_ inspired anything like the beginning of **VA** in the first place.

…That _is_ an odd contradiction, isn't it? O.o I never really thought of it that way.

Aline: That's because you don't think at all.

Oi! That's enough from you. Time for you to disappear, now. Let me study!

Aline: Why should I? I've been neglected for over a month here! (Distressed)

And _I_ haven't been before? Come _on_, Aline, you're not going to be able to get away with _that _excuse. (Rolls eyes)

Aline: Hmpf. (Glides suddenly forward, smacks the authoress across the cheek, flounces away)

Grr… DANG YOU! (Shakes fist after smirking muse, who promptly disappears) Now I have to get rid of the inspiration… and right before the first week of AP exams too. Waa….

Read and enjoy, folks, while I work frantically at trying to get rid of my pesky muse's "impertinence"! Hmpf! (Cyrano de Bergerac, thank you for your eloquent insults. :B)

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_Satisfied that nothing overly untoward was going to happen, Gohan turned towards his brother's American hosts. Bending down to their level (since they had not moved from where he had put them), he stuck a hand out and began to introduce himself in deliberately accented English. _

"_I'm Gohan Son, and I'm Goten's older brother." _

:-:-:-:

**Same Time to Five Months Later: 14-15 Years after the Cell Games**

After more explanations than Gohan cared to count, Alyssa and Marisa Albright were finally satisfied with Gohan and Goten Son. The "meeting" of sorts progressed quickly after that, though Gohan did tell Alyssa about her broadcasting problem.

"Goten is perfectly capable of mental communication," Gohan pointed out. "There was no need to shout."

Gohan was willing to impart with a helpful tip on how _not_ to broadcast, luckily for Alyssa. After that, the Albrights arranged a getaway plan, moving about with a quick efficiency that told Gohan they had done this many times before. It made him wonder how many times Nasser had come close to capturing them, and how long he had been persecuting them. Looking at Alyssa's pale face (literally; in her anxiety she was transforming at high speed again), Gohan knew better than to ask.

The Son brothers tacitly agreed to accompany the Albrights to their next destination, though Marisa and Alyssa seemed perfectly capable of uprooting their lives without them. To Canada they fled, settling in Vancouver and learning French, a venture that Marisa particularly loved but that Alyssa didn't care for so much. The girl much preferred German or Arabic.

Nevertheless, Gohan and Goten only left when the mutant sub-culture of Vancouver approached Alyssa. Upon hesitantly (and inwardly panicking), confirming that she was a mutant, Alyssa Albright, now known as Lisa Channing, was bombarded with the welcome that the five mutant emissaries unloaded upon her. They whiskered her away (quickly introducing themselves to Marisa and gaining her permission to take "Lisa" away for the day) and introduced her to the beating, thriving, and _alive_ underground culture that belonged to the Canadian mutants.

Alyssa was understandably enthralled.

As soon as she made the three friends that would end up being for life, Gohan and Goten investigated the defensive capabilities of these mutants, discreetly and quietly, of course. They found much to satisfy even _their_ high stands, and were greatly pleased when, as Alyssa told her new circle of friends about Nasser, they all loudly proclaimed their support of her. Clearly Alyssa was in the right place.

With all of that secured, Gohan and Goten made their final farewells, Goten promising to email (using one of Bulma's numerous computers), Gohan eager to get Goten home so he could recover properly from his trauma. The demi-Saiyan could see that his younger brother was about to explode with all of the stress of helping his host move in addition to the repressed emotions of The Kidnapping. One little cry was _not_ enough to deal with it, one explanation told in a flat monotone voice was _not_ enough, and though Goten had gone out to get his revenge, it had ended up being a trap, only _further_ complicating the situation.

Perhaps Gohan should let Goten rave on a mountain far, far, _far_ away from Mount Paoz before they returned home. Chichi by now would have noticed Goten's luggage and figured out that he was coming home. Perhaps she had already washed and put away his clothes within the luggage. Gohan knew his mother liked to be busy in an effort not to worry about something. She didn't have to worry overmuch about what had happened to her son.

Or that was the reaction he was expecting. With her odd behavior over the past four months, who knew how she'd actually be?

It was a question for later. Right now Gohan was more concerned about Goten.

Gohan knew better than to simply _ask_ Goten about The Kidnapping and The Thwarted Revenge. Goten was clearly still struggling to believe that there _hadn't_ been any mutants, that Nasser had predicted his reaction correctly and capitalized on it. Alyssa—err, Lisa now, he reminded himself—had told, painfully, of her father's initial rejection and disownment of her upon finding out she was a mutant at ten years old. However, a year after the rejection, mutant lobbyists had successfully pushed a bill through Congress that forbade discrimination against mutants, recognized them as citizens, and provided welfare for any family containing one or more recognized mutants. By "recognized", Alyssa explained, the bill meant registered, and _that_ was still a dangerous risk for a mutant to take, since Americans still didn't trust mutants.

It was Marisa who put forth the theory that Nasser wanted to register Alyssa as a mutant and receive as a result the hundreds of dollars that arrived every month as "mutant welfare". Gohan didn't necessarily agree, as Nasser had seemed pretty desperate not only to have Alyssa, but Marisa as well. Well, it was a complicated situation all around, and Gohan was glad to be away from it.

It was enough to make anyone's blood boil, much less the hotheaded Saiyan side of a hybrid's nature.

It took them a full day to travel in flight from Vancouver back to Japan, mainly because they took frequent rests. They didn't know how damaged Goten's ki center was after all, after being drained of the Super Saiyan Two level, fighting the barrier with his remaining energy, using ki magic, and then flying that _long_ distance back to Alyssa's house—it was best to be careful.

When they finally appeared in the beloved mountains of their homeland, it was almost too dark to see, what with there being no lights of civilization here to guide their eyes. They flew in for a careful landing, arrived safely, and promptly sprawled on the ground.

At least Goten did. The youngest demi-Saiyan, though he was certainly capable of the actions he'd thus undergone, nevertheless was not used to doing so. On the other hand, Gohan was strong from training endlessly in the Otherworld, popping to and fro the Otherworld and the Living World (which took a fair bit of energy after all), and of course, possessing a spiritual body.

So while Goten panted from the drain on his energy and on his soul, Gohan set about on a very familiar task: collecting firewood and the meal the fire would cook. In these mountains there was not much firewood, but plenty of flint and dry kindling that would suffice, Gohan found.

The guardian also discovered a shepherdess cheerfully herding sheep to her hamlet twenty kilometers away. He had a fascinating conversation in rustic Japanese about frogs, of all things. The shepherdess wish very much to see a frog and draw it, before capturing it for eating, which she was sure was delicious. Gohan very nearly promised to bring her a frog if he saw one—but only nearly. A distressed _baa…_ from one of the shepherdess' charges rescued the guardian angel from getting into a situation he knew next to nothing how to get out of.

Gohan didn't find any frogs, but he did find a hardy mountain goat (or three) that more than made up for that "disappointment". When he made it back to the campsite, Goten had already fallen asleep. The sight of that peaceful expression on a face so tense for the past week or so bullied Gohan into dropping the goats at his feet, joining the kindling he'd already dropped off. Approaching the sleeping figure cautiously, he reached down to brush the ever-present stray strands from his brother's face.

"I'm so sorry for not noticing just _how_ much you were suffering. I knew you were about to explode, but I didn't know just how much you were holding in on the inside."

Goten shifted, mumbled something indistinct, then cased moving. Gohan smiled briefly, then proceeded to speak again. "I don't know if I ever told this, but when the North Kaio offered me the guardianship of my future sibling, my first feeling was guilt. After all, I had taken Dad from you. What if you hated me for that? I was apprehensive, though I accepted the guardianship and vowed to atone for my sin by you. I had no idea what was going to happen, but I was determined to do my best.

"However, after nine months of anxious waiting, when I finally saw you in the hospital incubator, you were so tiny and weak, so fragile that it seemed _anything_ could break you, but you were _alive_. It suddenly didn't matter if you hated me for killing Dad; I just wanted to protect you, a little pound of flesh wailing at the top of your lungs, from anything and everything dangerous to you. I would see that you became strong and healthy, so that you were more than capable of protecting yourself when I no longer could, but I also just wanted to take care of you when you couldn't look after yourself."

Gohan took a deep breath, smiled at Goten's open eyes. "Over the years, I've watched you grow strong, like I wanted, but I've never been more proud or loved you more than now: After dealing with Nasser, you still looked after Alyssa and her mother and made sure they were safe.

"I'm proud of that, but you must remember that _you_ need to be looked after too, that you need help just like everybody else. It's _my_ job to ensure that you get the help you need, whether from me or somebody else. However, I can't do this if you won't tell me what's wrong, what feelings you're keeping inside of you that really should be let out."

He flicked another strand out of his brother's face. "You don't need to tell me now, but soon, before you explode and take the mountains with you," he said semi-teasingly. Goten smiled, bitterly, it seemed, but said nothing. Gohan sighed and got to his feet.

"I don't know about you," he exclaimed, forcing his tone to be bright, "but I'm hungry. I have three goats waiting to be eaten, but I need a fire, so hang tight until I get them cooked."

"Niisan." Goten's quiet voice stilled Gohan's actions; the elder demi-Saiyan turned back to the Goku-clone (now _there_ was a comparison he hadn't made in a while) sitting upright. "Thanks."

Gohan smiled tiredly. "No problem, bro." He held his arms out, instinctively, for a hug, an offer that Goten was only too happy to take him up on (though they were guys, they were also close brothers and alone besides. There was no one to surmise just how close they _really_ were here, thank Kami).The Son brothers remained this way for a while, long enough for Goten to start mumbling into Gohan's shoulder. Gohan drew back a little bit to see that Goten had fallen asleep again, ensconced safely in his brother's embrace and look for all the world like the baby Gohan had stared into the eyes of all those years ago.

:-:-:-:

Since Goten wasn't actually due from America for another five months, according to the weird American schedule, Gohan and Goten decided to stay in the mountains where they were and train instead. They flew back to Mt. Paoz and touched base with Chichi and Goku, both of whom expressed apologies for not acting like proper parents (Goku apologized with a confused and slightly fearful look on his face, as a) he didn't really know what he'd done wrong, and b) Chichi was standing over him with a maniacal glint in her eye and her dent-proof frying pan in her hand.)

Chichi also cooked up a storm for her two babies while Goku offered to come train with them, which Goten turned down. The parental units also agreed to stay mum about Goten's absence from America, though they would say that Goten had changed American hosts due to "Al" unexpectedly moving away. They would have to tell the rest of the Z-senshi about Goten's stay in the mountains, since his ki was hardly inconspicuous, but they managed to come up with a cover story that satisfied Gohan's stringent standards.

Clad in a purple gi reminiscent of his brother's outfit during the Cell Games, Goten pushed himself hard during training. Gohan allowed this, since the squirt probably felt the need to make himself stronger after The Kidnapping. Gohan knew equally as well that this course of action was _not_ necessarily the right way of recovering, but he had told Goten that he wouldn't be able to help if he didn't know for sure what was wrong. It pained him to refrain from interfering, but he knew that Goten had to learn from this experience, or he wouldn't learn anything at all.

So while Goten continued to be stubborn, Gohan either sparred with him, meditated extensively, did Otherworld research, or went hunting with Hageshii. Sometimes Goten went with him; most of the time he didn't. Because of the massive amounts of energy that Goten expended every day, the food that Gohan brought from Mt. Paoz every day was now only sufficient for Goten, not the both of them (thus Gohan's hunting). Also because of the mammoth energy expenditure, Goten was extremely tired every night and instantly dropped off to sleep.

Almost every night, he would have nightmares. Nightmares of being trapped, of being helpless while others were in danger, of being unable to defend himself, of leading others into situations and getting them into trouble—they all assaulted him, taking away the rest he so desperately needed and making him determined to work himself even more to the death. As if the training could help him get away from the demons in his mind.

Goten lasted a month and a half like this. By the middle of the second month, he was so strung out that Gohan forcibly ordered him to stop training, eat properly, and meditate instead. Ignoring Goten's protests, Gohan stood over him to make sure the squirt understood he was serious about it. Goten finally gave in and meditated, although the demi-Saiyan rarely fell into the trance-like state that would help him sort out his own feelings and make them more bearable.

This exercise lasted only a week before Goten finally broke down. Gohan found the shaking, sobbing form of his only brother at about four in the morning, muttering things about how weak he was, how pathetic, and how much he hated himself. Sighing, the guardian angel silently collected the rocking mess of tears, mumbles, and cloth-covered flesh into his arms. Goten didn't protest, only shifted so that he could bury his face into Gohan's shoulder.

"I just feel so weak and vulnerable, and—and dirty!" Goten cried. "I'm so angry at myself for not realizing it was a trap! I should have used my head and done something to make sure that there _were_ mutants to be rescued! Ki reading is good for _something_ other than finding out where you or everybody else is!"

He said more things along this vein until he had at last cried himself out and was hanging limply on Gohan. Gohan waited a few seconds to make sure that Goten had finished, then opened his mouth to say—

"Don't hate me, bro. Say you don't," Goten pleaded, still not raising his head from its spot. Gohan pushed Goten back and began shaking him.

"Don't you ever say that ever again," he hissed to the shocked Goten. "There is no way in HFIL that I would ever hate you, much less think you're pathetic. You may be weak right now, but I told you a month—no, two months ago—that that's my job, to take care of you while you are weak. I am your guardian angel, but more importantly, I am your older brother, and I will never stop loving you. So cut this crud about being too weak for me and listen up."

He released Goten's shoulders and pulled him back into a tight embrace. "When I died after beating Cell, I thought I had killed my father and that everybody should hate me. You know this.

"What you don't know is that it took me over two years before I would fully let that go, even with the North Kaio and the Grand Kaio and even Baba telling me that Dad's death was NOT my fault. They pounded this statement into my head again and again, until I was sick of hearing it, then pounded some more. I still didn't believe them in my heart of hearts, not even when Dad himself forgave me many, many times."

He drew back to stare into Goten's wide tear-filled eyes. "In other words," he said intently, burning his statement into Goten's soul, "it's going to take some times before you are able to forgive yourself, and even more time before you _do _forgive yourself. Let yourself have that time. Don't try to make yourself stronger in an effort to try and forget what happened or to overcome it. That doesn't work, as you have seen for yourself.

"All that does is give you nightmares and wears you out unnecessarily. Instead, let those feelings out, talk about them, what happened, then move on with your life! You've already done some talking to me and Alyssa; keep that up. Don't dwell on what happened, though, or talk to everybody you know about it. Just say your piece to someone you need to know and then go on living. It doesn't do anyone any good not to."

Goten was crying again, thick tears rolling swiftly down his face. He tackled his brother suddenly and hugged him as tightly at his could, which was very tightly indeed. Gohan, relieved, returned the favor with interest.

"I just feel so weak," Goten abruptly repeated, so low that Gohan thought at first he hadn't heard it. "I feel like I can't trust anything about myself anymore. Everything I knew about myself, about life in general, it's not—I question things now. Is that person going to kidnap me? Would I be able to escape if he did? Is that girl plotting to rape my mind in the next few seconds? The only way I can relieve some of my anxiety is by training, but I screwed _that_ up, too." Gohan sighed morosely. "I really am pathetic sometimes."

"As long as you realize it's only _sometimes_," Gohan murmured quietly. He didn't anything more, preferring to just let Goten pick up where he left off. It took several more moments before he did.

"I guess I understand what they feel now, you know, those kids you never really fit in anywhere and don't have anybody else to be with them. How insecure they feel—I used to have really no patience for that, but now—"

He broke off as his voice cracked. Taking a deep breath he nevertheless continued gamely on.

"I could even understand why someone would want to cut themselves or commit suicide. No," Goten sighed as his brother's arms tightened fractionally, "I don't feel like doing that, but that despair and feeling like being crushed underneath a huge pressure—I have that. It's just, it's just so _heavy_, wearing on you minute after minute, hour after hour, day after day. You grow so _tired_, and uncaring, and uninterested. You just don't find life meaningful anymore. It's hard to bear."

"Maybe you can do something about that," Gohan suggested. He felt Goten's tired confusion even through his shirt. "I mean if you share what you're feeling with other people who feel the same way, you can help ease some of that despair. Part of feeling so crushed is the belief that no one else has ever felt this way; therefore no one could possibly understand.

"Because of this, they feel out of place, like there's nobody who will not only understand what they feel but also accept them for who they are. However, when they _are_ accepted, _then_ they can start to grow past their fear and their despair and begin to live."

He smiled gently at the wide-eyed face of his brother. "I know it's not easy reaching out to people, especially if you have no idea how they'll react. But I encourage you to do so; it'll make you feel much better."

"I thought you said I shouldn't tell everybody—" Goten gulped as Gohan only smiled.

"I trust your judgment, Goten, even if you don't necessarily do at this time," he only said. Goten gaped before he caught himself, sighed, and let his head drop back to Gohan's shoulder.

"I have to tell Trunks, Sun-Hi, and Miwako about this, don't I?" he mumbled quietly. "And everybody in the Z-senshi."

"No you don't," Gohan soothed. His brother's shoulders had tensed up again, so he set to rubbing them gently. "You only have to tell those you feel comfortable with knowing."

"What's the catch?" the suddenly too-old voice enquired of him wearily. Gohan said nothing; Goten pulled back.

"You're going to tell them, aren't you?" the younger demi-Saiyan stated. Gohan frowned at the resigned, not accusatory, tone of Goten's voice.

"Not if you don't want me to," Gohan replied, neither denying nor confirming Goten's statement. Goten smiled briefly and nodded sadly.

"'S okay," he said neutrally. Gohan still looked worried evidently, for he made an effort to produce a genuine smile. "I feel better already."

"I'm glad," Gohan murmured, though he was unconvinced of the accuracy of Goten's statement.

Goten saw this and smiled again, tiredly but honestly. "I appreciate your worry, niisan. If all else fails, I'll go to a psychiatrist and talk to them."

"All right," Gohan agreed. He was even more worried that Goten would admit the need for a psychiatrist so easily, but he supposed he should also be happy that Goten saw so clearly that he did in fact need the help that an impartial stranger could provide. Needless to say, he tried to push the concern aside momentarily and watched Goten walk back to the fire to get some more sleep. He was pleased to see Goten fall asleep right away, and was even more pleased when no nightmares plagued him.

:-:-:-:

The month finished out with Goten finally giving into the restful trance that was meditation. The demi-Saiyan started to progress emotionally as a result, but he was still quiet and moved at a steady pace quite unlike his usually boundlessly exuberant energy. Gohan was beginning to see, however, that this was going to be Goten's way of behaving for a while now, so he backed off on his concern and instead treated Goten as normally as he could with the new change. Goten seemed grateful more than a few times for that.

Goten's training regime started up again, but now that the demi-Saiyan had recognized the drive behind his excessive clinginess to martial arts, he was much more careful in actually training. He admitted that it was much more satisfying this way; the physical tiredness of a proper training regimen was much more restful that the frantic exhaustion he'd been working himself into. His meditation obviously helped him; he was even able to talk a little more with Gohan about his guilt over leading Alyssa into such a distressing situation for her. His self-anger about not being smart enough to avoid the trap entirely was also discussed, but not in as much detail as Gohan would have liked.

Goten spoke no more of the crushing despair he'd so eloquently described a mere week before.

The next three months flew by, and before either of them knew it, it was time to go home.

:-:-:-:

Gohan watched as Goten had to struggle briefly not to fall from Miwako's tackle. The glow that flared up in his brother's face from being around his friends was more happiness than he had seen in the entire five months on the mountain range previously. Gohan smiled sadly as he realized this.

Goten was growing up. Soon, he wouldn't really need Gohan any more, not really more than he had since he'd started public schooling. Soon Goten wouldn't need him at all; Gohan was almost surprised at how sad he was about this. He had only one biological brother after all.

Goten would be fine.

Relief descended upon him when he made this revelation. It was funny how his emotions swung to and fro like a pendulum with his every thought and concern he had about his little brother. He chuckled to think that perhaps _he_ should be the one seeking outside help for the trauma just recently passed.

He paused at the thought. Why not? he asked himself. Why wouldn't it be true? It could explain his mood-swings (which reminded him of Chichi and their still-to-be-held discussion), and many other things besides that he hadn't thought of before. He nodded to himself. He'd talk to Baba today.

Directing a final lingering glance at the quietly animated expression on his brother's face, Gohan snorted to himself. Squaring his shoulders, he turned away, nodded again, and lifted into the air.

It was time to let go and heal.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Wow, poor Goten. Poor Gohan, for that matter. (Shakes head) Anybody besides me want to just glomp their troubles away? (Attempts to count upraised hands of readers) Err, I guess that's a majority vote then. (Sweatdrops) Onward!

Poor Goten! He's really gone through the wringer here, hasn't he? And Gohan seems to alternately step back one moment and rush in the next, giving both commands to tell him what's wrong and then saying that he should tell _someone_, not everyone, but _someone_, and then he goes and says to talk to a complete stranger! _What_ exactly is going on? And what was that little bit at the end, where Gohan thinks he might have his own feelings to sort through? Does our favorite demi-Saiyan _really_ need anyone to help him, or is he just deluding himself in some inexplicable way for inexplicable reasons? We may never know, unless we read the next chapter of **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **SuperMysticWarrior**, **Nahirta** (what thing with the Briefs and all?), **dbzfan952**, **lpgohanfanatic**, and **Tiara Shin** for reviewing! (Wow I have a lot. THANKS!) (Bows humbly to the reviewers she is unworthy of having, then springs right back up, waving cheerfully) Wish me good luck on the APs!

Sayonara!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 03.05.07_


	59. Chapter the Fifty Eighth: Recovery

**Vigilante Angel:** Chapter the Fifty-eighth

Disclaimer: The day I claim to be Akira Toriyama will be the day I admit myself to the nearest insane asylum. My drawing skills in no way match Toriyama-sensei's, nor even qualify to do so. I'm sorry to say this, but I do not own Dragonball Z. (Drat.)

:-:-:-:

Previously on** Vigilante Angel**—

_Directing a final lingering glance at the quietly animated expression on his brother's face, Gohan snorted to himself. Squaring his shoulders, he turned away, nodded again, and lifted into the air. _

_It was time to let go and heal. _

:-:-:-:

**Some Time Later: Fifteen Years after the Cell Games**

It was quite a surprise to Gohan to discover that he did indeed have his own collection of repressed emotions which needed to be expressed. Osi and Ron helped, but it was the Grand Kaio who would see Gohan through his recovery with his unique blend of cowboy eccentricity and common practicality.

Though Gohan wouldn't necessarily admit it, it was a relief to not have to be "strong" for his brother anymore. It was a relief to let out the baggage that he'd unconsciously been carrying around; it was even a relief to know that that baggage didn't get him into trouble with the Grand Kaio; instead the mustached God took in Gohan's tenseness, helplessness, worry, vigilance, and sudden emotional weariness and gave Gohan verbal comfort, laughter, and solid assurances.

When Gohan went back to the Living World two weeks later, it was to discover that Goten had taken his advice and told of his feelings to a quiet boy named Takumi, who seemed surprise that a) someone like Goten would talk to him, and b) that Goten would understand how he felt, much less feel the same thing. For Takumi would confess that he was indeed suicidal and had been plotting his own death for a week before Goten came along. At that point Gohan could see the gears churning in Goten's head as the glow of this discovery settled into him.

Goten and Takumi didn't necessarily become friends, but the latter found life much easier to bear knowing that stronger people than him faced the same issues he did every day. They did settle into a routine for the remaining week that Takumi had in Japan for the summer before he and his family vacationed in France: They would meet to say hi, discuss something of minor importance, part for the day (since Goten had elected to stay at Capsule for the summer instead of Mt. Paoz, he didn't have to fly five hundred kilometers every day to upkeep the ritual), come back and discuss their day or anything else of relative importance.

Sun-Hi, Miwako, Jie, Trunks, and Hadyn were ally mystified by the change that had come over Goten since the America Exchange. The ritual between Takumi and the demi-Saiyan was equally as mystifying, especially when the two promised to write each other while apart. (This penpal arrangement would last longer than originally planned as Takumi announced he'd be attending another high school come September because his family had somehow found out about his suicidal tendencies.) Trunks and Sun-Hi eventually became privy to the sordid details of The Kidnapping, as did the Z-senshi as it promised not to bother him too much about it.

In the end, Goten didn't go to see the psychiatrist, but he did begin to keep a journal the helped immensely. The emotions flowed from him onto the page in a way that verbal conversations couldn't allow; there was no worry about his book judging him either, which was a plus. The journal was his best way to pour out his soul.

Though Gohan and Goten had celebrated Goten's fifteenth birthday on the mountain the Z-senshi and Goten's friends insisted upon throwing the demi-Saiyan a proper birthday party. Takumi attended, along with his boisterous twin sister Ryo, who immediately latched onto Jie and wouldn't tolerate is normal scowling behavior.

Goten grinned to see Jie actually run for dear life away from the glittering Ryo, while Takumi smacked his forehead and shook his head in brotherly despair. Miwako simply glowered at the newcomer, her rebelliousness bristly at the complete _girl_ that Ryo was and therefore the complete antithesis of anything Miwako believed in.

All of the Z-senshi except Gohan attended, much to Goten's pleased surprise (for an entire gathering of Earth's Special Forces was very hard to coordinate), and all came bearing gifts. Chichi told her younger son she would speak to him later and in private, something that caused the demi-Saiyan no end of apprehension. Chichi had timed her notification just before the arrival of the monster five-tiered cake, however, so during the welcomed distraction of food, Goten's apprehension docilely retreated into the back of his mind for the time being.

While the cake was served and consumed in that order (despite Goku's efforts otherwise), Goten opened his presents. Large and small, permanent or perishable, homemade or not, all of the presents meant something to Goten: That these people did indeed care about him, thought enough of him to buy him something to celebrate the anniversary of the day he was born. He was no longer trapped and alone in a claustrophobic 3 x 4 cell, his cries for help ignored or laughed at.

The inner melancholy that, despite his best efforts, he still carried eased slightly. Nevertheless, he found himself looking for his brother, his eternal pillar of reassurance, and frowning when neither hair nor hide of him could be found.

Goten especially quailed when at last Chichi beckoned to him. His apprehension delightedly returned tenfold, causing his sure footsteps to turn shaky and uncertain. He stumbled as his vision began to tunnel in with the strength of his anxiety—

_Calm down, bro,_ Gohan's blessedly strong voice ordered him. _I'm going to be there with you when Mom finally talks to you. _

_You will?_ Goten hated how young his voice sounded. Out of all the Z-senshi, his mother had hurt him most with her apathetic reaction to the news of his exchange student program invitation. He had expected her to shout with glee, turn wild circles giddily, say her baby was growing up so fast, say that she was so proud of him…

_You __know__ I will_, Gohan replied reassuringly. Goten's heart lifted at the guarantee, yes, bit it positively soared when Gohan's ki bloomed into existence like a mushroom cloud after a nuclear explosion. A grin broke out across his face and he rushed to the patient form of his mother, which still beckoned. The duo retreated into the expansive Capsule kitchen, where Chichi appeared unsurprised to see Gohan lounging sedately amidst the flurry of humming robot drones.

"Hello, dear," she only said. Gohan received her hug with equanimity, his impassive expression unchanging, then stepped back. Chichi uncharacteristically accepted this action, which puzzled Goten greatly until he saw the disquieted set of her features. Then his bafflement turned to concern, despite the dread weighing down his stomach.

"Until Gohan told me," Chichi started, "I didn't realize that my reaction to your exchange student invitation hurt you. I behaved selfishly, and for this I am ashamed of myself." She smiled weakly at her youngest child. "I'm so proud of you, you've accomplished so much, done so many things that I never thought you could do, and I'm so happy.

"But at the same time, I'm sad, and jealous, and—I feel like you don't need me any more, that you're leaving me behind. I—Gohan didn't—I didn't feel like this when Gohan died, but ever since he was two, he's been disconnected from me anyway. I never truly knew him, not like I know you. I feel like you're my _true_ child, the son I never really had in Gohan…"

By this time, Chichi was freely crying, her voice breaking on the last word of her sentence. Goten discovered that he was quite dumbfounded—he hadn't really thought of how his mother might feel about all of this, despite knowing that she was as human—more, actually—as he was. Without consciously thinking about it, he drifted closer to his parent and hesitantly embraced her.

"It's okay, Mom," he murmured uncertainly as the shaking figure froze in his hug. She seemed so small suddenly, like the domineering authority he'd known all his life suddenly was revealed to have a weakness—and quite an emotional one, too. He quickly corrected his classification of emotions as a weakness, however, upon realizing that it was emotions that made life worth living, even the negative ones. He drew in his mother more firmly and rested his head on her shoulder (which was quite easy to do, considering he was a head taller than she was).

Meeting his brother's eyes squarely for the first time since their mother began talking, he smiled wholeheartedly at the quiet pride he saw brimming the onyx depths. Basking in the warmth his brother's pride gave him, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax properly for the first time in ages. Now that he knew what really was going on with his mother—how had she kept her loneliness to herself all this time?—he felt he could finally move forward from The Kidnapping and fully heal.

Finally, the last festering wounds of his heart began to ease and close up. It had taken nearly half a year, but he was finally getting somewhere. As usual, he had his brother to thank, and to be grateful to the Kaios (in particular "Northie") that he'd been assigned a guardian angel who knew him so well.

He smiled again at Gohan, thinking this, and saw clearly that Gohan understood his feelings. Suddenly sighing, he adjusted his grip on his mother and prepared for a long afternoon. Mom usually took _forever_ to placate once she started crying….

Gohan cheered inwardly as some of Goten's teenage exasperation returned from wherever it had been hiding in the face of Goten's mature sedateness. He hadn't been worried about Goten, no, but it was encouraging to see Goten display more of the behavioral traits that he considered "normal" for his younger brother. He could see much more clearly the path of recovery this way, and that was always a good thing.

"Here, I'll take Mom for you," he said, thinking about the source of Goten's exasperation. Goten surprised him, however, when he shook his head negatively and continued to hold on to their mother.

"I'm fine," Goten further assured him. "Thanks, though, for being here."

Gohan smiled. "Anytime, squirt."

There was no more communication between them after that for the rest of the afternoon, not even when the part guests burst into the room looking for the guest of honor. Luckily, Chichi had reduced her state of sobbing to hiccoughs by this time, so she was not so horribly embarrassed as she might have been had she actually been caught crying. Goku, concerned, moved in to comfort his mate; he gave Goten an inexplicable look a few seconds later. Goten was too busy fending off the Inquisition from Miwako to notice, but Gohan did. He felt mischief begin to boil his innards, but he sternly quelled the inappropriate (?) emotion, reminding himself he'd given up pranks long ago. It was supposedly drawing he'd taken up to replace that habit….

But he hadn't opened his sketchbook in ages. Oops. He shrugged nonchalantly, casually strolling out of the door into the main part of the modest suit of rooms in Capsule that Bulma had set aside for this party. He ignored the surprised glances that the normal humans shot him, in particular Takumi and Ryo, who had never seen him before. Instead he continued his walk towards a prime seat that was away from all the action but where he could still get involved if he wanted to. He just barely sat down in it when he immediately started laughing at Vegeta, who had somehow gotten hit in the face by a pie….

It was a much more cheerful Gohan that went back to the Otherworld than the one who had departed it.

:-:-:-:

Goten's second year of high school passed quickly. He learned how to drive, not that he needed to know, and even had a permit that he only rarely used in the first part of the school year. He didn't really have the time to worry about driving anyway, as both his heavier workload and his mother put pressure on him to do well for college. Not that it was any great challenge for the teenager to keep up the perfect string of A pluses on his report card, but the constant reminders from his high-strung and demanding mother were more than enough to permanently set him on edge.

Nevertheless, between learning how to drive and working through the mountain of homework, and between hanging out with his friends, keeping in touch with Takumi, helping Ryo chase Jie, and visiting with Gohan, Goten also found the time to keep up with the news, avidly following it day after day after day.

Chichi and Goku often commented on the assiduousness of their son about keeping up with world events; Chichi was so proud of it she overtly and subtly encouraged it. She would turn to the news without a word or tell Goten or Goku to put it on; whether Goten noticed the action or not, he appreciated nevertheless the support his parents had for him, even if they didn't know the exact reasons behind the sudden attention to the news.

Gohan knew the reason, but he neglected to mention it (as he had with so many other matters) to their parents. He was a good big brother in that way, Goten thought, in that he silently supported Goten's need for self-sufficiency. He was also a good big brother in that he made Goten tell _him_ instead if anything drastic was happening, Goten thought wryly.

"Yes, it's because of the mutants in America that I watch the news," Goten admitted. Gohan smirked, an action tat Goten patently ignored in order to continue chasing his train of thought. "I guess secretly I'm hoping to find any evidence of mutants in Japan. I wouldn't do anything about it if I did see it," he added, anticipating his brother's pointed response. "It's just, it'd be nice to know."

"Yes, it's certainly nice knowing you're not the only half-human being out there, isn't it?" Gohan asked archly. Goten nodded, not meeting Goten's eyes. The elder hybrid sighed in understanding. "I know what you mean. If I had known there were mutants when I was still alive, I would have been relieved, too. I wouldn't have felt such a burden to save the world, otherwise."

"What do you mean?" Goten asked. Gohan very rarely talked about himself before or shortly after his death, even about the Cell Games. The mountaintop discussion was precious because of this rarity, and he wanted this opportunity to find out more. Besides, he never would have imagined that Gohan thought saving the world was a burden.

Gohan smiled sadly. "You and I have seen how mutants are able to defend themselves. They are capable of surviving the onslaught of two Super Saiyans at least. Ordinary humans are not. Had I known of mutants before I died, I'd like to think that I'd have been under a little less pressure from myself to save the world. I'd have fewer humans to worry about, but more incentive, trying to keep the world whole for a growing group of people whose lives are anything but whole, or normal."

This statement gave Goten much to think about. Although Gohan's sentiments were true, the wording could be taken to be a little prejudiced against "ordinary" humans. "Ordinary" humans were just as precious as mutants, weren't they? And how did Gohan know that mutants were capable of surviving a planet wide destruction? The younger demi-Saiyan didn't say anything to Gohan, but was sure that Gohan sensed his doubt.

Nevertheless, all thoughts of mutants were swept out of his brain when a shocked and mechanical Miwako told her gang of friends that her father had contracted a terminal illness. It went by the name of something Goten had never heard of before, but he was sure it was deadly when Miwako's flat tone informed him her father had "six months left to live." It quite frankly sounded like cancer to him, but apparently it wasn't, judging by his friend's insistences.

All he knew was that even his parents blanched at the mention of it at dinner. Chichi instantly began enquiring of Goten if Gohan would mind if she offered to lend out his room to Miwako if she needed it. Goku looked shocked, sitting abnormally still in his chair. Needless to say, Goten became even more worried, but was denied the chance to research the disease when Miwako told him not to.

It was odd and not a little frightening to see the changes come over Miwako as time went by and her dad only got worse. He wondered if this was how Gohan had felt watching him struggle through his own despair. If so, no wonder his brother had been so insistent. With that in mind, he strove to be as good of a friend to Miwako as he could possibly be while keeping an eye out for a nervous breakdown.

His feelings of helplessness toward Miwako's plight also prompted him to speak to the rest of the Z-senshi finally about The Kidnapping. Earth's Special Forces were all very appreciative of this information, despite the well-earned guilt it caused them. It was a general consensus made that the Z-senshi were all drifting apart again and needed to start working to keep their ties strong. Exchanging emails was a good start (even for Chichi, who proved surprisingly adept with the computer).

Meanwhile, while Goten found himself involved in one emotional event after another, Gohan had finally realized a whim to visit Lower Heaven, the Otherworld for "normal" souls. It was quite by luck that he stumbled across Bulma's grandfather, but as he was as bubbly as his daughter, Bulma's mother, the demi-Saiyan quickly moved on. He did make several acquaintances amongst the normal souls, but it was only when the spirits started asking if he was related to a "Son Gohan," described as "an old man with a funny cap, but nice and all-around pleasant" that he began to pay any attention.

The trail to the person he surmised to be "Grandpa" Gohan was shockingly long. Hundreds of people with cloud-like ankles instead of feet speculated as to where the kindly old man could be, but very few of the locations they pointed out were actually valid, traces of an aura similar to his father's innocent nature lingering about.

He followed this aura as best as he could, ending up in a secluded area with the beginnings of a forest on one side, a small cliff pouring forth a sloping waterfall directly in front, and a small hut nestled against the continuing cliff face on the left side. The ki he sought was thick here, saturating every inch he stepped over, permeating even the air—

"If you are here to challenge me, young man, I'm afraid you are out of luck. I don't practice the martial arts anymore, not since I died."

The voice was calm and strong, if indeed riddled with that inevitable breathiness that came with old age. Gohan smiled to himself. Already this Gohan was living up to his legend, though he reminded himself that this might not be his great-grandfather after all. Still, what came out of his vocal cords was—

"Why would I want to challenge you, Gohan oji-san? You'd die a second time if I did."

Having issued his retort thus, the younger Gohan turned to face his eponym; standing with his limbs akimbo, he grinned at his father's adopted grandfather's shock.

"G-Gohan?" the elder Gohan stuttered, taking in the sturdy form of his adopted great-grandson. Gohan smiled again, more pleasantly, and took a single step forward. It was the only step he would be allowed to take, for in the next second, something big and furry leaped upon him, snarling savagely.

Or that's what Gohan thought, as he tumbled into darkness. He _thought_ what had attacked was big, was furry, and snarled, but it might not have been. It might have been a bird, a small bird with huge wings, or a monstrous lizard, but whatever it was that had assaulted him, it had been able not only to catch him by surprise, but also to knock him out with one blow.

Strangely enough, while within the dark, Gohan felt as if he were being judged, as if his soul were being examined brusquely, briefly, and then released, all with a dangerously indifferent air. The alien mind did not depart, however, upon releasing him, only whispered with a voice immersed in power:

Draw your weapon, halfling, and fight me. Let us see how well you are at communicating with your named naginata. Let us see how strong you really are.

From the moment that the voice had started speaking, however, Gohan had already fallen into the tightest defensive stance he had. Hageshii soon glittered in his grasp, burning fiercely in the dark. Gohan privately thought gratitude to his weapon, even as in the fore of his consciousness he asked it to tone it down. No need to advertise his position any more than necessary.

As if agreeing with his logic, the naginata dimmed gradually until only its edges were demarcated, and then only by thin flashes of light. Inside Gohan, Hageshii's fire remained; indeed, it expanded so as to fill every pore of Gohan's being, expressing not only Hageshii's own private gratitude for Gohan's trust, but also its true nature.

"Hageshiijutsu" did translate into "the art of the violent attack," after all.

It was a communion between the two that had never happened before. It was like Gohan's fusion with the sword Arikeru against Majin Buu, but so much more personal. They both existed upon a deeper level of thinking than they ever had before: Their hearts beat as one, they breathed as one, they pulsated with power, saw, thought, and moved as one. In their unity, they sensed the attack coming. In their unity, their spirits bubbled. A great roar, silent and terrible, rose from their throats, and pulsed outward in an ever-widening sphere of violence that let nothing hide and left nothing in its wake. Their enemy remained, however, so they readied themselves for the second attack together.

If anyone who knew Gohan had been able to see him in the dark, fighting an entity he could not see, or hear, smell, or taste, or physically touch, he or she would have much difficulty in actually recognizing him. Spirals of black ink covered his cheeks and rang in a severely straight line to his jaw, where they changed direction to follow the jaw line up to his ears. The scar that Gohan had received so long ago at Ron's blade was entirely and effectively concealed, erasing a mark that had so become synonymous with Gohan's appearance that its disappearance was a jolt.

His obsidian eyes had lightened inexplicably to a mud-brown startling in its intensity, while his hair changed into a salt-and-pepper version of its gravity-defying self, joining the carefully cultivated goatee growing on his chin.

The clothes he wore were of no consequence in this description because they were so dark and indistinguishable from the darkness, one couldn't see them. The only things familiar with the scene were, in fact, the naginata in his hands and his fierce warrior's expression. It was these that told the viewers it was Gohan they saw.

How had Gohan changed into such a creature? Why? What did it mean? Did Gohan know he looked like this? Why would he want to look like this? What was this change for? What purpose did it serve? Was it a new level of Super Saiyan power, or something else entirely?

None of these questions mattered, however, next to the biggest one of all: _What was he fighting with such a form? _

:-:-:-:

A/n: Well, _I_ got carried away. Heh! (Sweatdrops) I hate it when my chapters start doing that! (Pouts)

Aline: (Tries to look innocent behind SP's back)

(Doesn't notice, still pouting) Hmpf! Well, anyway, lots of interesting things in this chapter! First of all, _finally_ we know why Chichi acted the way she did towards Goten! Who knew she felt that way? Goten certainly didn't! Man! Still, there was lots of kawaii brotherly love in this chapter, which, of course, is what we love the most here in **VA**. Don't we? (Readers roar in agreement) YEAH! Nevertheless, what was Gohan's statement about mutants being able to survive a planetwide wipeout about? _No one_ can survive a planetwide wipeout, not even Saiyans! Duh! (Shakes head) Weird. Well, whatever. Lastly, Gohan found Gohan-oji-chan! Sweet! **But**,_what_ in HFIL attacked Gohan???? What could have had such the audacity to try to knock Gohan out, AND actually succeed? Oh my! Is this the end of the world for Gohan? I know if it is or isn't, because I have the next chapter written, and I gotta say... you're going to find out next time, on **Vigilante Angel**! LOL!

Thanks to **Maireilla** (X5), **lpgohanfanatic**, **Tiara Shin** (I hope you enjoyed this chappie!), **Nahirta**, and **Twin Tails Speed **for reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! (Bows)

You guys, I can't believe I'm saying this, but this chapter is actually one of the few I have left for **VA**. In just a few chapters (two, maybe three), the chronicle of Gohan as Goten's guardian angel will be finished. OMG! (Smacks forehead in disbelief) After so many years of writing this, **VA** will be done! I can't believe it. Wow. And you guys have stuck with me through it all, the ups and downs, and the lefts and rights, the cliffies, the fluffiness...

Aline: SP, this is NOT the time to get sentimental. Save that for when you actually FINISH **VA**. You'd better do it soon, because my contract with **AASN** only lasts 'till September of this year. (Smug) Unless of course I inspire you with MORE of **VA**...

(Returns to work station, stone-faced)

Aline: That's what I thought. (Buffs nails on her shirt)

Shut up, muse, and nspire me with the ending already.

Aline: (Sniffs) As you wish. (Swoops in and delivers a resounding _CRACK!_ across SP's cheek)

Oohh... (Rubs cheek even as her fingers begin typing madly) Dang, that hurt.

Aline: (Snickers)

SHUT UP, MUSE! (Glares fiercely)

Aline: Ohhh, fine. (Sighs melodramatically)

THANK you! (Huffs) Sheesh... (Bends over computer, typing frantically)

_Sinon! _

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 05.22.07_  
(It's my birthday today, everyone! The Big One Eight for me!!!! W00T!)


	60. Chapter the Fifty Ninth: Space

**Vigilante Angel: **Chapter the Fifty-ninth

Disclaimer: Yeah. Right. Sure.

A/n: Can you believe it? This is the third-to-last chapter ever for **Vigilante** **Angel**. ZOMG. After all this time…I just checked the stats and I am totally blown away to discover that it has been almost four years since I started this story. Wow. And now it's finally coming to a close. The end of an era…. (Shakes head) BUT it's not over yet, so don't count me out! Let's get this chapter rolling; I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing it!

A/n2: Ugh, Internet/computer problems. Don't you just hate them? That's my excuse for not updating anything for the past few days, though I've not got anything else in my way. Bleagh. The Internet still isn't fixed—I had to retype this entire chapter on a different computer. It was hard work! I hope you guys appreciate my plight and REVIEW:-)

On a side note, my DB/DBZ history is a little fuzzy. If you notice anything in this chapter that isn't historically accurate, let me know. I will be forever grateful to you. (Bows)

Chapter Dedication: To **Twin Tails Speed**, for being the only VA reviewer to wish me a happy birthday. Thanks! (Hugs)

:-:-:-:

Previously, on **Vigilante Angel**—

_How had Gohan changed into such a creature? Why? What did it mean? Did Gohan know he looked like this? Why would he want to look like this? What was this change for? What purpose did it serve? Was it a new level of Super Saiyan power, or something else entirely? _

_None of these questions mattered, however, next to the biggest one of all: _What was he fighting with such a form?

:-:-:-:

**One Year Later: Seventeen Years After the Cell Games**

As the ship shuddered again, Gohan cursed. "WHAT is going on?" he shouted, barely retaining his footing as the ship suddenly nose-dived. Across the bridge other figures were running and stumbling, but Gohan paid them no attention, focusing instead on regaining his footing. They knew no more than he did, judging by the confused and panicked look on their faces. One person, however, did shout upon seeing him.

"Aie, Gohan!"

Gohan looked up at the source of the frantic voice. It was an East Quadrant fighter by the name of Qui-klan, the very same fighter who had helped Gohan fight Kid Buu. Qui-klan, at the moment, was _not_ being very helpful; instead he was gesturing wildly and saying, "We need your help over here!"

"What's going on?" he shouted again, but Qui-klan was already gone. With a huff, Gohan picked up his pace and followed afterwards.

He bypassed the small kitchen and the common room, but turned left into a room that was markedly impersonal in its appearance. No decorations designed to ease the minds of its occupants existed here, only silently flashing computers, a wide window screen showing nothing but blank space, and two dozen panicking people.

Striding for another East Quadrant fighter, Gohan slid into the empty seat beside him and tapped him on the shoulder. The fighter, Kafee, immediately turned, panic suffusing his features, and began to debrief him on the situation:

"It's a code 4XL glitch in the system. The _Odiya_'s internal think processes are refusing to cooperate with us, refusing our every order and instead doing something she wants to do. We've barely missed being hit by asteroids twice or crashing planetary force-fields three times because of this. We—"

"'Ere come uh 'nuther un!" screeched someone else; Gohan thought it was the South Quadrant girl named Ratri. Sure enough, upon the screen appeared a rapidly approaching asteroid of gigantic proportions, enough to be called a planet in of itself, Gohan thought detachedly. Kafee immediately began inputting frantic coordinates into his screen; bright glowing squiggles of numbers and letters galloped across the screen at a rapid rate.

Finally, gasping hysterically, the East Quadrant resident jammed his fingers onto the Execute button. The screen blinked for a heart-stopping moment with the instructions Kafee had typed, but then it blanked. The _Odiya_ jolted, but not because of the orders she had received. No, she jolted because she had rolled on her side to avoid the asteroid, instead of nose-diving at a speed a tenth that of the speed of light as Kafee had ordered.

When the ship rolled upright again, half of the people in the room had fallen to the floor. Gohan paid them no heed, however, as he took over the keyboard from Kafee (ignoring also the transformation of the keys from Surtn to Saiyago) and began typing in his own query. Lines after lines of glowing script filled the screen, fingers flew steadily back and forth over the transformed keys, and still the ship shuddered in rebellion as Gohan tried combination after combination of orders that would bring her back under control.

The lights had just begun flashing off and on for the second time, signaling the failure of some defensive system somewhere, when Gohan finally looked up.

"Hold up, people!" he shouted, standing up from his seat. Instantly two dozen pairs of eyes were on him, distracted from the anxious task of figuring out the failed defense. Gohan's voice echoed in the sudden silence, reverberating powerfully like some Kaio's despite the sheen of sweat on Gohan's face.

"All of the orders that we have given the _Odiya_ have either been stupid or downright deathly. I'm thinking that the ship has an autonomous brain somewhere inside of her, able to think for herself in emergency situations, and that's why she hasn't obeyed us. So instead of fighting her on her judgment, let's let her do what she thinks is right and focus on maintaining her defensive systems instead. Whaddya say?"

"Heck naw!" Ratri called, her froglike eyes bulging out even more in her wild panic. "Ain't nobody gonna think dat reas'n'ble!"

Almost everyone seemed to agree with her, but one of the three pilots looked thoughtful. With a concentrated air, this pilot released his white-knuckled grip on his controller. Immediately the controls jerked violently to the left, just as the ship followed in a wild swoop that nearly knocked Kafee from his chair.

Seeing that what the ship had missed was another ship that none of them had ever seen before, the two dozen people in the room immediately decided that Gohan was right and snatched their hands back from their keyboards. Gohan roared at them not to give up entirely, but to remember that the _Odiya_ did need support defensively after all. The hands of many different colors, shapes, and sizes returned to their respective keyboards; all pairs of hands made their computers exit out of the ship's internal systems and plunge instead to the external defensive shields.

Gohan himself copied his colleagues' actions, working swiftly even when the lights flared out and stepped them all in darkness unbroken except for the lighted computer screens. Even so, some of these lighted computer screens were stuttering as the _Odiya_ paid less and less attention to her occupants and more and more attention to the outside where all the danger was, now that the spirits inside her had stopped acting like beheaded chickens.

Gohan's own computer was slow in responding to some of his demands, but that may have been because Gohan was entirely too used to his laptop, which was far more modern than what faced him now.

The plateau remained like this, with people frantically rushing to help the _Odiya_ in some way or another, screens shining brightly turquoise in the dark like giant fireflies flocking together, and the clicked clack of keys and hushed murmurs accompanied it all. The _Odiya_, for her part, now that she had free reign, shuddered, rolled, blared, rocked, and lunged through the asteroid field she'd been flown into, straining hard to get her and her stupid occupants out of imminent danger and expecting no thanks at all for her panting efforts. She had learned not to expect anything of that sort, because usually spirits with more sentience than she had took the credit for themselves—

Everyone within the _Odiya_ gasped as in the wide window appeared a small gap of space between one giant floating block of frozen planetary matter and another. As if reading their minds, the ship instantly revved up, bolting forward in a move that flattened everyone against the back of their seats, and shot forward through the gap into the wide open blackness of space—

The computers began whirring again as all of hem began again to function properly. The three pilots, all of whom had released their controls, now grabbed for them flailing wildly. The screen before Gohan flashed once, briefly, then beeped, asking Gohan pointedly if he wanted to exit the system infrastructure. Taking the hint, Gohan hit "Execute" (barely avoiding Kafee's flapping lunge as he tried to prevent the demi-Saiyan's action); all around him his colleagues did the same, allowing the _Odiya_ to lick her wounds alone and unsupported.

Shoulders slumped in relief, Gohan got up and followed the crowd of two dozen Otherworlders out of the cockpit. The three pilots were quite capable of flying the spaceship now that there was only black space to worry about. Some of the crowd were speculating on how exactly the _Odiya_ had landed in the middle of an asteroid field in the first place; Gohan chose not to listen to this conversation. Quite frankly, he had other matters to get back to.

Circumventing the common room and the kitchen once again, Gohan settled with an explosive sigh into the curved room that had been allocated him. A plaintive _mew_ directed the demi-Saiyan's attention to the other resident of this room, a peeved-looking ice-blue Egyptian Mau cat who was blinking, irritated, at him from behind the wardrobe.

"Aw, look at you," Gohan voiced sympathetically. "You're all tossed about. Come here and let me make sure you're okay."

No sooner did he hold out his arms than the cat was clawing her way into them. Her fur changing from ice blue to a warm russet color in the process. Her Mau head firmly butted Gohan's chest, clearly giving him a piece of her mind about leaving her alone while the ship seemed to break apart over her head.

"Yes, yes, I know," Gohan soothed, smoothing the cat's rumpled coat in a way that soon had her squirming delightedly for more. Smiling, Gohan found his chair, sank into it, and let out another breath.

"Quite the adventure, Hageshii," he commented breathlessly. "The squirt'll want to hear about this."

The cat, now confusing a russet-colored Oriental Shorthair, simply purred in his lap, clearly ignoring his words in favor of his petting, which was far more interesting. Gohan snorted in amusement, then turned back to the laptop waiting patiently for him. Opening it up, unlocking it, and still caressing the feline purring in his lap, he picked up where he had left off reading Goten's latest missive:

"…_Jie-kun and Ryo-san have finally hooked up, after months of persecution. Of course, Ryo-san is positively glowing about this, while Jie-kun has been half-grumbling about getting her out of his hair. Actually, though Ryo-san is good for Jie-kun, since her bubbliness seems to have reduced his constant moodiness and made him more into that person we met at the Arena Tournament. Maybe he's not as naïve, but then again, none of us are…" _

Gohan snorted, more sharply this time. Goten may think that he and the Gang weren't as naïve as they used to be, but they certainly _weren't_ without ideals yet. Some of those ideals were unrealistic in the real world, but they still lived by them and were not as jaded as they thought themselves to be. They had to live a little more for that.

"_Takumi appears to be doing fine. His letters say that he's got some friends at Fonjibara now, thought it was definitely rough in the beginning of the year. I can empathize, though, 'cause it's rough over here without you. Miwako-chan's still not functioning right; she breaks down every time she thinks about her dad, and I'm the only one who can be there for her because Sun-Hi-chan is at that stupid archery tournament. Wako-chan's father looked so terrible when he finally died…" _

Gohan sighed. He'd hated having to leave his little brother to go on this stupid mission, though his presence was mandatory. Apparently his altercation with Gohan ojii-chan's unapologetic phoenix guardian and the subsequent tangential research Gohan had undertaken had awakened the only recent discovery of a horde of long-existent problems. As a result, Gohan and a bunch of other fighters from Upper Heaven had been selected to exterminate these problems, further assisted by a team of East and South Quadrant technicians aboard the four-decked space transporter, the _Odiya_.

Was it his fault he'd discovered that in another dimension the death of the Eternal Dragon Suzuko had resulted in the literal materialization of its last ten or so wishes that, in dragon form, had terrorized the universe for years before they were put down? Was it his fault that Gohan had remembered that Dende had needed to create another Eternal Dragon for Earth because of the death of the original one due to the fusion of Piccolo and Kami? Was it his fault that he'd had to research the concept of multiple dimensions and how to travel between them on Baba's strict orders?

The last nail on his coffin had come when a mandate had been issued to him, telling him that he was part of a pre-selected team of fighters whose purpose was to determine the existence of the original Earthian Shenron's materialized wishes, and if proven, to "take care of them".

The mandate had been signed by the Eminent and oh-so-Illustrious Shin, Supreme Kaio, Ruler of the Universe. It was insult added to injury, and Gohan let Baba know this. Loudly.

Nevertheless, Gohan, sighing, had gathered up his possessions. He'd had the bright idea of claiming guardian angel status, but one stern look from Baba in the next minute dissuaded him effectively. Obviously the clairvoyant had seen in her convenient little crystal ball what he had planned to do and taken steps to stop him.

Sometimes Gohan wished for his younger rule-breaking days.

He returned, shaking his head, to Goten's email.

"_Speaking of Sun-Hi-chan being at the archery tournament, did you know she's got a boyfriend?!"_

"WHAT?!" cried an astonished Gohan. "No way!"

"_I know what you're thinking: No way, im__**poss**__ible! Well, it's true. Name's De Zhou. And he is _exactly_ like Sun-Hi-chan, both apathetic and ambitious. While Sun-Hi-chan wants to be a doctor, he wants to be a manga-ka and run his own manga store. Too good to be true, huh? Well, get this: his parents don't want him to be with Sun-Hi-chan. They say that her family is too snooty and would only get Zhou-san hurt. _

_I more think of it the other way around, that Zhou-san could hurt _Sun-Hi-chan_, but the Des don't agree with that. As a result though, Sun-Hi-chan and Zhou-san are planning on taking the same entrance exams together without telling their parents. Sun-Hi-chan plans on flunking the entrance exams her parents want (and they only want her to take those because she'll meet her would-be-billionaire husband there, they say). Zhou-san is going to the college he wants, but says he won't go without Sun-Hi-chan. Quite romantic, huh?_

_I just wish they'd be more careful. Nothing good can come out of rushed plans. I'm afraid that Zhou-san and Sun-Hi-chan will end up finding out that they're NOT perfect for one another, and that Sun-Hi-chan will be stranded on her own while Zhou-san goes off on his own and forges his own life. It's almost certain that Sun-Hi-chan will be disowned by her family; she'll be forced to make her own way n the world then, and I'm not sure she can really do it. I'm always going to be there for her, but sometimes even _I_ am not enough…_

_Sun-Hi-chan hasn't told Miwako-chan yet; the only reason I know is because she's been sending me emails for the past week. I don't really agree with this decision, as I think Miwako-chan would be happier having something else to focus on than her father's death. _

_Hi-chan doesn't want Miwako-chan to feel 'even lonelier' or that Hi-chan doesn't care enough about her and her dad. I can see that reasoning, I guess, but I still disagree. My word isn't enough to break the stalemate that's occurring now, so I'll just have to bide my time and choose my moment." _

"Good for you, bro," Gohan murmured. "Pick your battles and stick with them."

"_Mom's doing as well as every, what with the beginning of my third and final year approaching. She's already talking about prepping for college entrance exams, now that I __**have**__ decided to go. Dad's been telling her to leave off on me, but she's not listening, as per usual. Speaking of entrance exams, Trunks and Hadyn-kun are really nervous about theirs coming up in a month. I swear that Hadyn-kun will bite his fingers off if he doesn't stop chewing his nails soon! Trunks is barely sleeping, he's always got red eyes, and he's gotten better at pretending to be awake. He stuffs himself like a pig like he always does, though, so I'm not too worried. Nothing like hell freezing over if a Saiyan stops eating." _

Gohan grinned wryly. There _were _some parts of HFIL that were frozen; he made a note to tell Goten that in his return answer.

"_Bulma-san is as busy as ever at inventing. I overheard her muttering something about making sure that Trunks didn't use his Super Saiyan powers at college. Why she would worry about that _now, _after six years of school already, I don't know. Who knows what goes on in her head? I'm only concerned that Mom will want one for __**me**__." _

Gohan chuckled. It was a definite possibility that their mother would look into something like this. He knew that whatever Bulma invented for this little problem, she would make sure it didn't hurt them. Perhaps she might even be able to put something in that made Trunks and Goten forget about being unable to use their Super Saiyan powers.

"_Dad and Vegeta are doing well. They love being able to fight in SS3 form, though Dad thinks that there might be a level beyond SS3. I don't know what to think about that. I'm sure there is one, but I don't necessarily want that power. I want to live as normal a life as I can, and that includes stuff other than fighting and gaining more energy. Vegeta says that's B.S. but I'm not paying him any attention. It's how I feel and I'm sticking with it."_

Gohan nodded his approval. "That's the way to do it, squirt. Show him what you got."

"_Now that I've given you all the news, what's up on your quarter? Is Hageshii doing okay after the phoenix fight? How's Bardock ojii-san? Have you found any of those dragons yet? I wish I could be there with you in space rather than here on Earth going into my third year. The stories about Namek that you told me were all exciting—and now you get to go into space _again_. UNFAIR! It's MY turn, niisan, when do _I_ get to go? _

_(Sigh) I know it's only been a week since you left, but it feels like forever. Hurry up and find those dragons so you can come back and catch my graduation! I will be really angry at you if you miss it. _

_Well, that's all I got. Reply quickly, and TTYL. _

_Goten"_

"Believe me, Goten, I don't intend on missing your graduation," Gohan said firmly to the last paragraph. "I'd travel through time if I had to get to it. You're not going to be able to squeeze by without me."

It was highly likely that time-travel was going to be necessary, the demi-Saiyan knew. That was why, in his spare time, he researched the exact procedure that would take him home right at Goten's graduation after this mission was finished. He also practiced with Hageshii in his other spare time, something that was good since they both needed it.

Giving the cat in his lap another rub, he brought up another window and prepared to compose his response.

"_Dear squirt, _

_So far it's been pretty boring in space, unless you count running into an asteroid field and having the ship asserting self-control to get out of it as interesting…" _

:-:-:-:

"Gohan, they say up front that they've spotted the planet one of the dragons is supposed to be on. They're calling for all the Delegates to come up to the cockpit."

It was Bardock who interrupted Gohan just as he was writing the last paragraph of his response (asserting his wish to hurt his brother just for thinking that Gohan would miss graduation). Looking up, Gohan noted that the worldly form of his father's figure was practically vibrating with excitement. This was the first time in _decades_ since he'd last had a mission of this sort, the demi-Saiyan remembered, so there was good reason for Bardock ojii-san to quiver so. In response, he nodded at the shape of his grandfather rather than tease him about his rising ki (because he didn't think he'd emerge unharmed if he did). Instead he matched grins with his psychic grandfather just as a voice rang out over the P.A.—

"Will all Delegates please come to the cockpit area? We have found one of the dragons. I repeat, will all Delegates—"

Gohan, Bardock, and a crimson-furred lynx Hageshii had already made their way past the common room by the time the voice repeated itself. Excitement boiled within them, for they did not know how strong this materialized wish, or indeed any of the other dragons, was. It would be HFIL to find out if they were stronger than expected, but—

But that was why they were Saiyans. Saiyans _lived_ for the tough fights, the fights were blood was spilled, bones were broken, bodies were torn apart, and spectacular collisions of ki occurred every other minute. It was for these fights that a Saiyan had been born, not the mindless training of the Otherworld, day after day after day of boring spars and worthless opponents. This dragon had better be strong, these two Saiyans said to one another in their minds, or there would be HFIL to pay.

It was with this declaration made that the two historical warriors, one the ancestor of the other, the other the strongest fighter of the entire team of Delegates, plunged forth to meet the first face of battle.

:-:-:-:

It had been a month since he had last sent an email to Gohan, and his inbox still didn't contain a response. Goten knew very well the distortions of time and length that happened in outer space travel, but knowing it and actually being confronted with it were two entirely different things.

With a disappointed sigh, Goten closed his email provider and sat back in his chair. Currently he was supposed to be researching the effects that the works of two different Japanese authors had upon their audience and analyzing how these effects made the works meaningful. It was a tedious assignment, one that required what his teacher called "metacognitive thinking". Goten rather thought of it as an excuse for the sensei to torture them. 'Course, he liked literature as much as the next person (all right, _more_ than the next person), but that didn't mean he _wanted_ to strain his brain more than he had to. It was just reading a book, for Kami's sake!

Goten was just about to reach out to Gohan and tell him of his complaints about this "assignment", he remembered in time, just before his words fell away into an endless chasm of nothingness. He released the words instead in another melancholy breath; he shifted to lay his head onto the desk next to his keyboard. He thought about asking his mother for suggestions for the assignment, but then decided not to, instead choosing to remain as he was.

There had been so many times like this, when Goten had wanted to tell Gohan something, but didn't remember in time that their link was too thin for communication. He'd undergone an umpteen million times the heart-stopping realization that his words weren't going anywhere, reminding him cruelly not only that Gohan was unreachable but also of when he was trapped during the Kidnapping. His calls for his elder brother then hadn't been able to reach other; Gohan had told him the same was true from _his_ end.

Goten knew he was pretty much over the Kidnapping, but it always took him a while to start his heart back up to its proper rhythm after encountering the chasm, the sweat caused by the panic that always gripped him, dropping lazily down his face.

So he'd finally learned to withdraw his words before the dropped in the first place, though he had not yet come to the point of restraining from the contact. It was a habit ingrained in him from years of always having Gohan close nearby, whether it was physically or mentally. Not even the Starvation Incident that had happened when he was years younger could compare to this.

Then he had known where Gohan was, could feel him steadfastly refusing to speak to him. The link had been vibrant with this rejection, nearly bludgeoning him mentally whenever he tried to open their bond and speak to his brother. Now he couldn't feel his older brother so vividly: The bond was thin and grey, with a soft pulsation that was Goten's only reassurance that there was indeed a conscious person on the other side. It felt unhealthy, quite frankly, to Goten, who was used to the bond energetically beating inside his heart, along with his heart; Goten would even go so far some days as to call it dead.

It would be a long year before Gohan came home again, Goten realized.

With that thought in mind, Goten was unable to move from his head-down position for the rest of the night.

:-:-:-:

A/n: Ach, poor Goten… He really is dependant on his brother, isn't he?

Aline: Yes, he is.

(Suspicious) Are you mocking me?

Aline: Yes, I am.

(Rolls eyes) Whatever. So, Gohan had to go on a mission into space for the discovery and extermination of the last wishes of Shenron, our beloved planet's Eternal Dragon? WHAT? That sounds like GT to me, only not! What's with Gohan's cat? Why is she called Hageshii? Where is the real Hageshii anyway? And what's with Sun-Hi and Zhou De? Are they the perfect pair or are they doomed to failure? If you ask me, they sound like the famously star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet? Oh no! Does that mean that they really are doomed to failure? NO! I don't want them to die! Poor Miwako-chan, though, her dad's dead and one of her best friends is keeping a secret from her in an attempt to protect her! I wonder how she'll react when she finds out exactly what Sun-Hi is up to…. And lastly, will Gohan make it to Goten's graduation? He better, or Goten will seriously be angry, and hurt, and disappointed! Find out if Goten has to beat Gohan to death, next time on **Vigilante Angel**!

Thanks to **adlex47**, **dbzfan952 **(x 2), **lpgohanfanatic**, **Tiara Shin**, and **Twin Tails Speed **(thanx!), for reviewing! (Bows)

Ciao,

**TheShadowPanther **and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 6.14.07_


	61. Chapter the Sixtieth: Ice

**Vigilante Angel: **Chapter the Sixtieth

Disclaimer: I don't own Dragonball Z. The only thing I do own here is **Vigilante** **Angel**, and that is NOT helping me make my living. Got that?

ALSO, I know that Eis Shenron is not what I write him as, but I couldn't find any other way to fit him in this chapter otherwise. Forgive me!

A/n: Can you believe that this is actually the second-to-last chapter of Vigi Ange? O can't. It's amazing...I wouldn't have gotten this far if it weren't for you, my lovely reviewers, reading and supporting me all the way! Shout OUT for all of you!

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_It would be a long year before Gohan came home again, he realized. _

_With that thought in mind, Goten was unable to move from his head-down position for the rest of the night. _

:-:-:-:

**Several Months Later: Seventeen Years After the Cell Games**

Graduation Day. It was graduation day, Goten's final departure from high school, and a certain _someone_ still hadn't shown up. It was approaching the final moment of the meet-and-greet before the ceremony began, and Gohan was nowhere to be found.

Hurt, resentful, and resigned, Goten turned around and slouched in his seat again. Though he had spotted the rest of the Z-senshi (including Dende, to his pleased surprise) very easily—and didn't a smile cross his face at the thought that they were all there, from his parents to Bulma, Vegeta, Trunks, and Hadyn, to Krillin, Juuhachi, Yamcha, and Master Roshi to Tien and Chiaotzu to Piccolo and Dende—nevertheless the one person who really counted to him, who had been there since before his birth, who knew everything about him and still loved him anyway—

He wasn't here.

Goten unexpectedly felt tears prickle in his eyes; bowing his head quickly, he surreptitiously wiped at them. He disgusted himself for being so weak; Vegeta was right after all, he really was—

RAAAAAWRRR!

At the roar, Goten jumped up and automatically slid into a defensive stance. He was glad he did, as he stared in shock at the huge dragon that had appeared out of nowhere. The dragon, at the moment, was befuddled, a gentle circle of stars whirling merrily about its head. The Z-senshi had to take advantage of this moment—before the dragon woke up and started attacking all of the humans here.

Goten did not get the chance to express his ideas to the rest of the Z-senshi, for another roar sounded and another object appeared out of the suddenly cloudy skies. This object, unlike the dragon, did not fall upon its haunches and sit stunned, but glided in towards them in a smooth descending flight.

It was at the sight of _this_ object that the humans finally sensed danger. With screams and flailing limbs, the five hundred odd humans abruptly stampeded out of the graduation courtyard, clogging up the only two exits in the race for freedom and uncaring of who fell and was left behind. But Goten wasn't paying any attention to the humans. The unidentified flying object held all of his gaze, as it grew bigger, and bigger, and even bigger—

—Until it grew so big as to be evident to be a ship equal in quality to one of Bulma's creations. Black in color, sleek in contour, and with two massive engines to match its mammoth size, the spaceship swooped into a hover above their heads. With a loud rumble (which made Goten realize how _quiet_ it was for such a large vessel), the engines turned on themselves. The ship began to fly downwards, the rumble finally shaking the earth and the people still foolish enough to remain on it (namely, the Z-senshi). The Z-senshi themselves scattered out of the spaceship's way, though Goten managed to read the giant lettering on the side as he ran away. The letters spelled:

_THE ORITHA_

Instantly, Goten's brain churned. What was the name of his brother's ship again? He couldn't remember, but he knew it was something similar to the _Oritha_. He wanted to believe that it was the same ship—

RRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRR!!!

Oh, yeah. There was a reason other than the ship that they were still here. Goten quickly returned his attention to the dragon; he just as hastily had to scoot out of its way as it unexpectedly charged. The _Oritha_, which had just landed, seemed to be in trouble, causing Goten to chase after the dragon with the determination to stop it.

He abruptly halted in surprise when the _Oritha_, far from being helpless, instead opened up a volley of missiles upon the ewe-necked blue dragon. None of these missiles seriously hurt the reptilian creature, but they did distract it. Goten discovered why a second later.

"N-niisan?" he whispered, dumbfounded. The stranger standing next to him turned in query. Goten found himself face-to-face with a much older and ferocious carbon copy of his very own father, and, therefore, of himself.

"Not niisan," the elder Goten corrected, obviously recognizing his second younger form. "Ojiichan," he said instead, grinning fiercely.

"Ojiichan!" someone else called as if from afar. "Eis is about to attack! Get the Z-senshi in on this quickly before he freezes us again!"

"Got it!" Bardock answered, looking so much like Goku at that moment that Goten was at a loss. He snapped out of this reverie when his grandfather turned to him.

"All right, kid, here's how we're going to do this. Eis Shenron over there," he pointed to the dragon opening its mouth wide, "is an ice dragon, born out of a bizarre wish for a planet-wide blizzard. He uses both his mouth and his claws for ice attacks and non-ice attacks; his claws are deadlier, avoid them when you can. You'll fight with my other grandson over there, I assume you know his name—Oh, and that's another thing. You don't want to say anybody's name while around Eis. He'll just somehow use it against you and make you attack _us_, not him. Evil trick, but there you are. What can you do about it?

"Right. Got all that, mago?"

Goten, blinking from the speed at which his Saiyan grandfather spoke, nodded rapidly. Bardock grinned again and clapped Goten heavily on his shoulder. "Good. So far, you are certainly living up to your niisan's words."

He departed then, leaving behind a stunned Goten blinking rapidly in his wake as he dashed off to find his son Kakkarot, whom he had never seen in person since that fateful day of Vegeta-sei's destruction.

"Otouto!" snapped Goten out of his trance, just in time for him to see the tail end of a transformation of his elder brother. He hurried over to the changed man, gaping all the while—

"Look out!"

He ducked just as a rush of icy wind blasted over his head, raining ice crystals down his back and quickening his pace even more. He finally reached Gohan, with his salt-and-pepper hair, black spirals on his cheeks, weird eyes, and even weirder clothes—but who gave exactly the same hugs he remembered and discovered he missed quite a lot.

"Good to see you, squirt!" Gohan smiled. Goten beamed his agreement to the sentiment, even as they both turned at once to the dragon and the mess it was making in its rampage.

"Time to clean this up," Gohan said grimly to Goten's nod. "You remember how to do that ki magic barrier I showed you once?" the elder brother queried, his brown gaze never wavering from his target. Goten had to think, but he eventually nodded as the relevant memory returned to him. "Good," Gohan continued. "I'll need you to make one for me—NOW!"

"_Leoclinis!"_ Goten yelled abruptly, throwing his fingers together hastily. Just as abruptly, a barrier of oval shape clapped into place around Gohan's lunging form. Pain erupted in his abdomen, but Goten ignored it practicedly, instead concentrating on maintaining the barrier around his brother.

The pain soon went away, freeing his concentration even more, luckily for both Goten and Gohan. Gohan finished his lunge and leapt back, his naginata howling in triumph as more than a quarter of Eis Shenron's scales fell off in a glittering blue cascade.

Wait, a naginata? Goten thought, distracted. Where did that come from? I didn't see it when—

"Otouto! Your turn! Use one hand to keep up your barrier and the other to form a Kamehameha! Quickly!"

"I don't know how to do that!" Goten yelled back. "I didn't have to fight Cell, remember?!"

"Don't argue with me, squirt! Just do it!" Gohan blocked another one of Eis's onslaughts and pushed him back with a snarl to Ratri the South Quadrant fighter, who furiously began kicking at it while she could. With a grunt, Goten tried to do as Gohan told him, taking the barrier in one hand and drawing back his other—

"Oof!" He stumbled backwards as Eis Shenron flung something at him. The object clattered on his barrier, distracting him long enough that he had to upkeep his barrier with two hands again.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Trunks working together with Vegeta to cover the Shenron's left flank while behind them Bulma, Chichi, and Hadyn cowered. Bulma was yelling all sorts of obscenities at the ice dragon for ripping her best skirt (of all things) while Chichi was doing her best to keep Hadyn calm (and failing, judging by the surreal look on the Englishman's face).

Goku and Bardock had formed another father-son team that was highly successful, while Krillin, Juuhachi, and Yamcha worked with Tien and Chiaotzu to keep Eis from advancing beyond their line of defense. Piccolo and Dende were also giving their best, though it was clear that Dende was horribly unfit for battle.

Ashamed of himself for his childishness when everyone else was working so hard, and for being unable to work with his brother when other pairs of relatives who weren't as close worked so excellently together, Goten took a deep breath. He put up another barrier within the outer one so he could properly center himself, without distractions—

His inner barrier crumbled as his concentration finally focused. With his eyes closed, he could feel Gohan holding off Eis Shenron's circular wave of ice for him. Gohan was also holding something up his sleeve that was follow his own attack—

"I hope you know what you're doing, bro," he muttered as he opened his eyes. Gohan merely shot him a smirk, one eerily distorting his almost unrecognizable face—

"Kamehameha!" Goten shouted. During his brief interlude, he had almost unconsciously shifted the ki magic barrier to one hand and juggled the formation of the patented Son move in the other. The feat would awe Goten later, when he had to the time to dwell on the memories, but now he was pumped too full of adrenaline and the infamous Saiyan battle rage to care.

The Kamehameha caught Eis Shenron by surprise, though it didn't actually do much to the dragon. Gohan, however, immediately followed up his brother's attack with a howling swing of his naginata and a simultaneous forward step. With a screech, Hageshiijutsu was released, heading straight toward Eis's head—

Goten poured more ki into the Kamehameha. Eis, distracted from the whirling of Hageshii, nevertheless tried to deal with both at once. He put a claw out to redirect the Kamehameha straight into Hageshii's path...

"SOLAR FLARE!"

Goten thanked whoever had remembered that ages-old technique that no one had used in forever. Goku had taught him it once, but he'd never really considered its use until now. As a result of the Solar Flare, the ice dragon had failed in its attempt to dodge Hageshiijutsu. Still, the naginata did not strike in the place it wanted to, landing on the dragon's shoulder rather than cutting into its neck.

Gohan, noticing Goten's Kamehameha was tiring, took over that aspect of the operation. Goten, determined, let his barrier go, readying another ki assault of his own. Catching Gohan's eye, he motioned with his hands what he wanted to do; Gohan nodded once he got the idea. "Keep up your barrier if you can, though, squirt. The backslash won't hurt quite as much."

"I shall watch over him, Goh—er—sensei," a strange fighter said, coming up behind them. "The two of you do what you wish. I will do my best to guard you both."

"Thanks, sensei," Gohan acknowledged. "Let's do this, otouto."

"Right, niisan." Goten returned his attention to what he had planned, something that was risky but had a calculated high percentage of working. It might not tally knock out Eis Shenron, but it would at least make him vulnerable enough for the others to take him down.

Gohan called back his naginata, which glowed in his hands once before falling inert again. Goten moved lightly into the appropriate stance, arranging his hands in a seemingly bizarre fashion while his legs settled into a loose knee-bend. Gohan had already set himself and Hageshii up in a similar manner.

The next moment went all too quickly. Goten had no spare time for thought as he suddenly launched himself into a cartwheeling series of back-flips, building up his speed and momentum until the peak moment, at which he allowed his legs to push him up, not forwards, and burst into SS2 flame at the height of his last leap.

Suddenly he felt the barrier covering him evaporate; he almost stumbled, but Gohan's steadying mental touched restored him. Sending a distant thanks to the brother in question, he continued his fall straight towards the glowering head of Eis Shenron.

He struck with everything he had; the energy seared past the thick scales on the dragon's head and bore into the more vulnerable skin beneath it. The effort was still not enough to actually stop Eis from whirling around to face its attacker. Goten saw quite clearly the giant tail swinging into his trajectory; the next second he choked, trying to see and breathe past the suffocating sensation in his chest, and he was flying.

It didn't really register, this last revelation, not when he felt so _cold_, as if ice crystals were growing on him. Humorlessly, he chuckled. He wouldn't be surprised if he _was_ a huge Saiyan-sized icicle—he only hoped he thawed soon, or he'd get some major frostbite problems, which he didn't want.

His only worry about the thawing—what if he melted completely in the process? What an icky sight it would be, to have a Goten-sized puddle of a flesh-colored carbon-based organism seeping out of his wet clothes. Eeeewwww. Better not think about that.

_Pain_ startled him from behind as, he deduced, he collided with a giant rock face. He was pleasantly surprised he hadn't shattered into a million pieces; it proved he wasn't an icicle after all. He winced as his back slid over countless small bumps on the façade of his rock face. It was by no means a gentle spread-eagled slide down the mountain, Goten thought wryly, detachedly, but at least he wasn't embedded into the rock face. Now _that_ would have been embarrassing. Not to mention far more agonizing.

He discovered, upon reaching the cliff bottom with an entirely too painful thump, that his body just didn't want to cooperate anymore. With the ki magic shock, the thump of a draconian tail, and finally meeting the cliff face, along with the slide to the bottom—it was all too much.

He was still cold, too, and getting colder by the minute. Kami, had he ever been this cold? He couldn't remember—and anyway, thinking took too much energy. He needed his energy to warm himself up, and, harder yet, _stay_ warm. So he resolved to stop thinking and let his body do the rest.

Easier said than done.

His brain was such a maelstrom of thoughts and analytical moments and daydreams—it took forever for it to relax, drift, and eventually shut off. In a situation like this, it was _not_ conducive to keeping him warm, much less warming him up in the first place.

Still, he was so cold. Maybe getting to sleep would help him stay warm? Goten lacked the energy to yawn, but exhaustion was definitely setting in. He smiled to himself drowsily. He'd just found the solution to all of his insomnia problems—get himself so cold that his consciousness was forced to shut off to help his body conserve warmth. There was a slight problem with that theory, but he didn't remember what it was. He shrugged inwardly. What could a little sleep hurt when he was so, so cold?

Satisfied with that rationalization, Goten finally relaxed. He did so just in the nick of time, for above him burst a flurry of activity: Voices too loud to be decipherable, faces floating in a disembodied circle above him, and hands roughly petting his face.

He recognized his brother's face—completely back to normal (and why wouldn't it be normal? he wondered)—and looking worried to boot. He gave a little half-smile, trying to reassure his elder brother, even as he relaxed still further.

He realized that what he had been waiting for all along was Gohan—Gohan, his oniisan, his father figure, his guardian angel, and his best friend, practically his other half, even his twin, only more than a decade older. Gohan had finally arrived from wherever he'd gone; he could unwind now, let go of his anxiety.

Widening his smile more naturally, he sighed, turned his head, and closed his eyes.

Finally, he felt safe.

:-:-:-:

Translations:

Mago—grandchild

Naginata—glaive

:-:-:-:

NB: I should have done this earlier, but I borrowed the idea of the "lightened eyes" from **GreenGecko**'s HP fic "Revolution" (a fic I totally recommend!). Sorry I didn't do this earlier, **Gecko**-san, and sorry for not asking you first! (Bows humbly)

:-:-:-:

A/n: ARRRRRRGGGGGH! GOTEN-KUN, DON'T GO TO SLEEP! STAY AWAKE!!! I DON'T CARE HOW COLD YOU ARE, YOU. MUST. NOT. _SLEEP!_ NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Aline: Shut _up_, SP! You're getting on my nerves over here!

But Goten-kun is being an idiot! I need to knock some sense into him already! (Clenches fists at said character)

Aline: It was _you_ who wrote him that way, SP.

And _you_ who gave me the silly idea! (Fixated on muse now)

Aline: Ohh, boy. (Hoods eyes) This is going to take some time. (Sighs, shaking head) Dear readers, do pay no heed to us. We are about to…_engage_…in a heated discussion. Please proceed to the acknowledgements of reviewers while we talk. Thank you.

Readers: (Do as the muse says, stopping for a while in surprise at the loud _slap_ and the equally as loud _OUCH!_ that follows)

Aline: (From a distant) Carry on, readers! It's all a part of our heated discussion— (Readers hear the furious moving of solid heavy objects, as if the furniture within SP's office is being rearranged) Carry on, I said! (Readers switch around hastily to their computer screens)

Thanks to **Tiara Shin** (x 2; Thanks!), **Twin Tails Speed**, and **lpgohanfanatic** for reviewing! (Bows)

Ciao!

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline from **AASN**

**AASN;** Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 06.22.07_


	62. Chapter the Last: Beginning

**Vigilante Angel:** Chapter the Last

Disclaimer: I shall have to hurt some lawyers when this is over. (Stink-eyes FUNimation lawyers glaring at her) Yes, you. You know who you are.(Glares)

A/n: This is the last chapter. ...Ah. (Sweatdrops) I probably thought it would actually never end. I had entirely too much fun writing this, but, like the proverb says: "All good things must end."

Don't you hate it when proverbs are right? (Scowls)

Warning: This is a HUGE chapter. Settle yourselves in for a bit of a rocky ride, if you would. Wouldn't want any readers falling off now!

:-:-:-:

PO**VA**—

_Widening his smile more naturally, he sighed, turned his head, and closed his eyes. _

_Finally, he felt safe. _

:-:-:-:

He was so warm...and protected. He was in someone's embrace, he could feel, but he didn't' care to find out whose, not right at the moment. He was comfortable, and relaxed, and didn't have anything pressing to do. Life was good.

"Goten."

The voice was a faint jar on his consciousness, as if he should pay attention to it. But he didn't want to, he wanted to just lie wherever he was and stay there. He waited for the voice to come back, but it didn't, to his relief and pleasure.

Just as he was settling in again, however, the inflection irritatingly prodded at him again. "Squirt, you gotta wake up. I can't keep you in this stasis forever; it's draining of ki at an incredible rate."

Huh? he thought disconcertedly. He was in stasis? Why? What would happen if he wasn't in stasis? Who was keeping him in such a state?

Oh. _Gohan _was the one who wanted him to wake up. He _was_ the only one who called him squirt, after all. But why his brother would need to keep him in stasis in the first place, he still didn't know the answer.

The warmth he felt faded slowly as he struggled to obey his brother's orders. The feeling of being protected and safe didn't disappear, though, which seemed to bolster him in his fight for wakefulness once he registered it. Still, his battle with his body proceeded slowly, he gradually winning back the conscious control he wanted.

"That's it, otouto, you're getting it," Gohan encouraged him. Now that he knew it was Gohan speaking, he could more clearly identify his voice and the concentrated relief it held there. This last emotion him all the more strongly to the fore.

"Careful, squirt. Don't strain yourself too much now."

He sighed and rested where he was for the moment. He was almost out of his subconscious; now he only had to open his eyes. Wonderful. That was going to be _so_ easy to do, if just waking up was anything to go by.

"You can do it, bro. One last push."

He rolled his eyes inwardly at his brother's hovering, but nevertheless he gathered himself, _pushed_, and came roaring out of sleep—

The first thing he saw was a confused mass of a flesh-colored something with two spots of black near its center. This, after a blink, resolved itself into Gohan's smiling face, relief and affection and fatigue meshed together into a not uncomfortable bundle on it.

He stared. Though he had heard Goten's voice in his internal battle, the reality of its owner had not occurred to him. He had missed Gohan so much for so long it was almost a shock to him to actually see and feel the solidly physical form of his niisan and not be dreaming.

"Niisan, you're here," he whispered, his great surprise patent in his voice. Gohan smiled broadly, the relief fading in the rush of affection that overcame it.

"'Course," he responded, freeing a hand from its clasp of Goten to punch said person lightly on the shoulder. "Wouldn't miss your graduation for the universe."

"Literally," someone close by muttered. The two demi-Saiyans, though they heard, ignored the speaker, though Goten could see Gohan mentally promising the speaker due vengeance. He smiled contentedly, the normalcy of the observation serving to soothe him in a way the real sight of Gohan did not.

"S'okay, nii. You don't need to do that to her," he said, causing Gohan to look at him and smile ruefully. "'Sides, you kind of crashed my graduation."

"Yeah, I kind of did," Gohan agreed, looking around at the mildly-termed mess the Otherworld squad and Eis Shenron had made. "Luckily that was the last of the dragons, so it won't happen again."

Goten, about to speak, closed his mouth with an inaudible snap. Gohan felt the impact, nevertheless, and swiveled his head around back to his younger brother.

"Bro, I know what you're thinking. _Yes_, I will be able to come to your proper graduation, whenever that's rescheduled. I don't care if I'm still your guardian angel or not by then—"

"What?" Goten interrupted. "What do you mean, 'if you're still my guardian angel or not? You're—"

He fought out of his brother's embrace. A yowl brought his attention briefly to his lap, where a miniature panther (he recognized it as a cat breed called Bombay a second later) seethed at him, though for what he didn't know. His gaze focused on Gohan again soon enough.

"Calm down, Goten," Gohan calmed, his hands settling on the younger Son's shoulders. "I must have forgotten to tell you that my guardianship of you ends when you turn 18. Since that's a month or so from now—"

"But I still need you!" Goten cried, squabbling to find a purchase in a world that was quickly falling to pieces even as he spoke. "I—I felt like something was missing all the while you were gone! It was you—I can't function right without you! I—"

"Shh. It's all right, or it will be. Just relax—"

"HOW?!" Goten yelled, fed up with what his brother was telling him. "How can I relax when you—you tell me something as horrible as this?! I _need_ you," he repeated desperately. "I've gotten through everything in my life, good or bad, because of you. You can't—you can't take that away from me now, n-not when—"

When Goten finally drew breath, Gohan seized the opportunity to speak. "When have I ever said I'd leave you? Huh? When did I ever say we'd never see each other again? I said only that my tenure as your guardian ends as soon as you're eighteen. That's it—that doesn't mean that the status quo has to change or that it will. I'm your brother, Goten, and I will always be looking out for you, if I am your guardian or not. _Do you understand me?_"

Silence settled tensely over the both of them, one intent on being understood, the other combating his feelings of hysteria and helplessness. Finally Goten nodded, tightly; the next moment he was pulled back into a bear-hug, much to the Bombay's continuing displeasure. The cat was ignored in favor of the heated words Gohan whispered into his hair:

"_Never_ doubt me like this again, squirt. It's not often I see you totally break down like this, but I suppose it's my fault for leaving you for so long. Well, it's not really my fault, but I could have found a way to keep in better touch than emails, and—"

"Gohan?" Goten croaked, his vision filled with that familiar sight of his brother's pendant: sideways figure eight in shape, holding a line through its center, and with swirls on either end—

"Ye-es?" Gohan asked, drawing out the last syllable as if irritated at being interrupted.

Goten considered his next response in silence. Should he say it? Or shouldn't he? He decided to just do it and say:

"Shut up and let me fall apart already."

"Fine," Gohan huffed theatrically. Despite his tone, his hands were already running over the other demi-Saiyan's hair, making the thick spikes stand even more on end with his caress. Goten leaned into the reassurance and milked it for all it was worth.

Neither would mention the wetness of Gohan's shoulder when they finally parted.

:-:-:-:

"This isn't a normal cat, is it?" Goten asked many moments later, looking down curiously at the cat settled comfortably in the crook of his elbow. "It was a Bombay before," he said. "Now it's...something else."

So the animal was. Now it was a dark orange cat, semi-longhaired, caramel-eyed, and yawning widely. It blinked at Goten nonchalantly, then burrowed deeper into Goten's lap.

"I think...she's an Abyssinian. I don't know. Hageshii, what are you?"

To Goten's astonishment, the cat lifted its head and affixed Gohan with a sleepy glare. "Turkish Angora, you idiot," it grumbled, its voice suffused with the adrenaline of battle and feminine in its richness. "Have you forgotten all I taught you about cat breeds? And I am _not_ dark orange, Son Goten, I am cinnamon. _Cinnamon_. Do _not_ forget that."

Gohan rolled his eyes at being called an idiot while Goten gaped. A talking _cat_? That was rare. The only other talking cat he was aware of was Puar, but she wasn't exactly your average cat, fat and blue and floating as she was. This cat was not usual, either, having changed into a more familiar Siamese, while its color strengthened to a happier brown, but it at least followed the conformation of real felines.

"Th-that's interesting," Goten stuttered, while Gohan snickered. "W-what..."

"Hageshii is not actually a cat." A screech from Hageshii punctuated Gohan's statement; with an eye roll, Gohan corrected himself. "Well, she _is_, but not a natural one. This is actually the cat form of my glaive, born from the second level fusion I told you about, with Gohan oji-chan? Whenever Hageshii and I aren't fighting, she is a shape-shifting cat, able to change colors and breeds or even species as she wants. It's really interesting, too: Her color reflects my mood, while whatever cat she is reflects _her_ mood. It can get really strange sometimes, can't it Hageshii?"

"You have _no_ idea," that peculiar voice radiated from Goten's lap to say. "Being a polka-dotted leopard was _not_ fun. I felt like crying from the sheer embarrassment of it all."

"Which is why you turned into a Persian the next moment, which was even worse," Gohan retorted with alacrity, clearly used to arguing like this. Hageshii hissed at her Saiyan wordlessly, but Gohan was unmoved. Instead the Saiyan lifted a hand and began tickling the feline behind the ear, into which the cat wriggled while saying: "You _inpit_, you know I can't resist that..."

"Which is why I use it," Gohan snorted, smirking triumphantly at Goten. Goten snickered, holding up his hand to hide his face from the glaring Hageshii, who still wiggled, unsatisfied.

"So, can I see it?" Goten asked when he could finally speak without laughing. "Your fusion, I mean?"

"You've already seen it, bro," Gohan told him. At his look of surprise, Gohan elaborated. "Remember the fight against Eis? The ice dragon?" The elder hybrid nodded when Goten's face cleared in comprehension. "Yeah," he continued. "Anyway, even if you hadn't seen it, I wouldn't have been able to show you right now, because Hageshii can't ever go back into glaive form. Her destiny is done." He shrugged.

"Oh." Goten struggled with himself for a few seconds, then blurted out his query. "So, does that mean that's it? I mean, is that the last of the dragons?"

Gohan smiled. "Yep. That's the last of the dragons. The mission is now officially over, has been for a few hours."

"I've been out that long?" Goten was startled into asking.

"Yeah. I actually almost didn't get to you in time. It was lucky you held on as long as you did; otherwise I wouldn't have been able to save you."

Goten blinked. With a nervous laugh, he said, "You make it sound like I almost died or something."

Gohan merely looked at him.

"No way," Goten said, his eyes widening. "I did not."

"You did," Gohan confirmed. "When Eis knocked you back with his tail, he lowered your body temperature by so much that any energy you had left over from your attack immediately went towards dissipating the cold. Unfortunately, you didn't have enough energy to completely fight it off, so you only got colder the more energy you spent. By the time I got to you, you were nearly unconscious just from your sheer coldness."

Gohan's smile was bitter. "You're actually lucky, you know. Most fighters that Eis has frozen have died almost instantly. For instance, there was J'yon-u!-oh, a West Quadrant fighter, who fought for ten minutes before Eis wiped him out with one of his claws. He had time for only one breath before he became a genuine icicle. He didn't even last long as an icicle; Eis simply rammed into him and broke him into a million pieces." The demi-Saiyan's eyes were faraway as he contemplated the memory of the battle.

Goten let out a shaky breath. "Wow," was all he could say. "I _am_ lucky."

Gohan nodded his wry agreement. "Yeah. But that was what I was made your guardian angel for. I still have responsibility for you until you turn eighteen. So don't think that you can do all sorts of reckless things now and expect me to stand by and let you die from them." Gohan's tone was teasing, if not with an inflection of sternness lying underneath it.

"Oh, you wish," Goten sneered. "I know better than to do _anything_ reckless when I'm around you. You'll just hit me for being stupid."

Gohan smirked. "That's right. But don't worry; after you become a year older, you'll be able to do all the reckless things you want without me there to beat you up." This time, Gohan's smile was a little sad.

"Yeah," Goten responded quietly. The youngest demi-Saiyan knew for certain that he couldn't live in a world without Gohan there to see it with him. He was too used to his interactions with his elder brother; the sudden absence of them would be harder to bear than even this past year had been. This time, he wouldn't have a bond with his brother _at all_; there would be just _nothing_ where once there had been a link that had been, and still was, the very backbone of his existence. Without that link, Goten was utterly and completely lost.

There was no way Goten would let that bond just disappear. There was _no way_.

With that in mind, the youngest Son smiled more strongly at his brother. There was just no way he would let the bond they had disappear, even if he had to use drastic measures to keep it this way.

He had a month or so; he had some time, but he'd better get cracking if he wanted to have a nice, smooth plan by the time his birthday rolled around.

There was just _no way_.

:-:-:-:

Graduation came and went. Goten was grinning from ear to ear the entire ceremony, and not just because once again the entire Z-senshi had gathered for the momentous occasion. Gohan looked very smart in the suit and tie that he wore, looking indeed like he had worn suits and ties all his life. Knowing that Gohan had never worn a suit to anything and had had trouble tying the tie only increased Goten's amusement, much to Gohan's disgruntlement.

Nevertheless, Goten made sure there were a lot of cameras taking a lot of pictures of him and his brother, in addition to the ones of him by himself or of him with his friends. It was a precaution of sorts against disappointment, in case his plan to preserve his bond with Gohan failed (a plan he still hadn't come up with). Goten wasn't thinking that his plan would fail, not all, but it was still prudent to have more than one backup plan up your sleeve.

As the weeks and days to his birthday crept by, Goten and Gohan spend as much time together as they possibly could. Before being told of why they suddenly were joined at the hip like conjoined twins, chichi noticed this with growing concern. The demi-Saiyan brothers set her to rights quickly enough; her frown relaxed into a sad smile that did not abate as the day of judgment approached.

Though Trunks was part of the original Demon Trio from their younger days, Gohan did not see much of him over the remaining weeks. The poor demi-Saiyan was too busy planning the farewell party for Hadyn, who father had insisted upon his son's company on the former's worldwide travels.

"Now that I'm old enough to be called an adult and how to behave myself and all that rot, Dad suddenly takes an interest in me and wants to be a proper 'dad' to me," Hadyn had informed Trunks bitterly. "If you ask me, all he wants is to make sure I know how to run his business properly. So now he's taking me away and is probably going to try and mold me into a proper Rochester now."

He'd snorted. "He lost all chance of being a proper dad to me when he just abandoned me here with Sam all those years ago," he grimaced at the thought of his housekeeper Samantha, "and with barely any idea of what to do with myself." He'd sighed then, looking defeated. "I'm lucky I met you when I did, Trunks," he'd said tiredly.

Trunks had had no answer for that, nor had Hadyn expected any. This information had inspired the demi-Saiyan, however, and he was throwing himself into this effort with almost all the energy he had.

Neither of the Sons begrudged him this, quite frankly.

Finally, it was the day before Goten's eighteenth birthday. Out of some unspoken agreement, both brothers had elected to do nothing but lie, unspeaking, in the meadow stretched out next to the Son house.

Gohan was mulling over how this reminded him of the days leading up to the Cell Games, when all he and his father had done was rest in this very meadow and gaze at the clouds crawling by.

Goten was reviewing his plan over in his head, looking for and worrying over any loopholes in the plan he found at this last minute. The atmosphere between these two was like that of any two close people parting for an indefinitely long time: heavy, and full of regret.

The minutes trickled into hours, and the hours passed. To Goten's uncomprehending mind, it was suddenly dark, and Chichi was calling for them.

A groan next to him reminded Goten of Gohan's presence. "We'd better go, squirt, if we don't want our eardrums to explode." Gohan said, holding a hand out for his younger brother to take. Goten took the hand, thinking that this just might be one of the last times he'd get to do this, and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. He and Gohan both moved slowly to their watchful mother (who had been joined by Goku) as above them the sky darkened even further.

They'd just barely gotten inside when, unbelievably, it began to rain. The Saiyans and Chichi turned to the window just as a bolt of lightning flicked through the sky; the snarl of thunder following shook the walls of the Son house. Goten felt his heart pound ominously. In what seemed like unbearably slow motion, he turned to look at Gohan. To no one's surprise, the elder Son had already trained his gaze upon Goten, but with an odd expression.

Gohan was fading.

Heart plummeting, Goten started forward. He reached his hand out, but both he and Gohan knew it was futile. It was with a sad smile that Gohan watched Goten approach, walking as if through molasses, holding an excruciatingly torn look affixed on his face. When Goten's next step would have put him into grasping range, Gohan looked to the sky. Goten took the next step and made to seize Gohan by the shoulders, but Gohan was already insubstantial: his hands simply passed through. Gohan instead looked down and gifted him with another sad smile. Raising a hand to give him a salute, Goten's elder brother, who had been dead for over eighteen years, finally said goodbye, and disappeared.

Goten stood dumbly where he was for a single second, then fell backwards, screaming, as a raw and agonizing pain split his heart wide open.

He passed out, still screaming, in his father's arms.

:-:-:-:

He struggled upward towards the tiny pinprick of grey that was lighter than his pitch-black environment. The black pressed down, sideways, and up on him, unwilling to let him go, but he insisted, and little by little the quicksand he'd fallen into gave way. The pinprick of grey gradually expanded, so gradually that even he himself didn't realize it until he was directly in the middle of it. Still he looked up and saw an even paler shade of gray.

He considered trying for that, continuing his efforts to get out of whatever problem he'd landed himself into now, but what was the point? There had been a point before, he knew, but he also knew that that point now no longer existed, whatever that point had been before. So he considered staying where he was and waiting for something to happen, only that was boring. He'd never been one for boring things.

That said, he struck out again for the lighter gray. His going was much easier this time, he noticed: He didn't put forth as much effort to slide through the grey. As a result, he was able to get to the light gray quicker, enough at least to be able to tell when he got to it. But other things were happening, so he wasn't particularly interested in this discovery.

What distracted him were ghostly echoes of emotions he couldn't put a name to that nevertheless swirled in a gigantic whirlpool around him, about him, and within him. It was this whirlpool that slowed his progress now, dragging at him, confusing him, and effectively stranding him; he had no idea what he was supposed to do now, since his environment looked completely the same wherever he looked.

Then a voice, blessedly real in this unreality, intruded upon his nightmare and lifted him upward. He began to follow this voice, feeling a sense of déjà vu, as if he had done this before. ...He had the feeling, oddly enough, that he had. How strange.

The trail that he followed eventually ended at a person, one with a lot of the same facial features that he himself had. He found himself wondering how he knew this; certainly he didn't know what his face looked like. A smile from the familiar stranger put out all thoughts from his head; he stepped easily towards the other figure.

"I can see from your confusion that you don't remember me yet," the stranger said with more than a hint of amusement in his tone. "No matter," he added, presumably at the scowl he was receiving. "You'll know me soon enough."

Before he could even process this strange information, the stronger had already reached out and taken hold of his shoulder. He gasped involuntarily and seized the hand, but not to throw it off.

"Niisan, what am I supposed to without you?" he pleaded instead, looking into the slightly sad eyes his brother sported. "Already it's painful without you."

"I know that, squirt," Gohan said soothingly, bringing his other hand to rest on his other shoulder. "Believe me, this is as hard on me as it is on you."

"Wishing you back alive isn't going to work, is it?" he inquired abruptly. It hurt to admit this, to lose faith in his big plan after weeks of nurturing it, only to have no chance to setting it into motion after all. "It won't recapture what we have already lost."

Gohan only nodded, the only action required to answer this statement. "But as long as you are still recovering from the breaking of our peculiar bond, as long as you still need me, I'll appear to you in your dreams," he said, though this was of small consolation to him.

"We won't ever meet in person again until I'm dead," he said instead with a final sort of certainty.

Gohan nodded, but insisted, with narrow eyes, "That does _not_ mean that I'm going to let you kill yourself, however directly or indirectly you go about it. You have a life to live, Goten, out of my shadow at last.

"I know, you don't feel like you've been under my shadow," Gohan said, interrupting him, "but you have. We've always been headed for this point, Goten. Trying to deflect the inevitable—"

"But it will be—it is—" Goten whirled out of Gohan's reach and began pacing agitatedly. Gohan sighed and rubbed at his eyes.

"Goten," he started again, "I know your pain. I feel it myself. As cruel as it sounds, though, it's part of life, and death, too, I suppose, to fee this pain and hurt unimaginably long for it. But it will pass—"

He broke off both fists of Goten's attempted punch combo in both of his own hands. "It will pass, bro," he continued in a softer voice, "quicker for me than for you, I suspect, because I'm dead, but we'll both move on eventually. And we _will_ meet again one day; I'll only be happy with that day, however, if you've lived your life and not cut it short."

He released the quaking fists and gathered up the shaking form that was the younger brother he'd watched grow up for eighteen years. How time did fly by. "Think of that when you are at your lowest. Think of the interrogation I'll subject you to about your mate, your children, and your children's children. Think of the many embarrassing stories about yourself, your friends, and your family you'll be able to tell me, of the dramas and traumas you'll experience, all the regrets and the pride you'll have that you'll share with me—think of all of that while you grieve.

"This is my chance to live vicariously through you, if you prefer to think of it that way, and I don't want you to screw it all up because you're too busy thinking of killing yourself instead. Think of this as a chance to do many of the things that _I_ wasn't able to do because I died so young. You'll do them for me, not you or anybody else, because this is my last request of you before I go.

"I love you," he said to the freely sobbing Goten clinging to him. "I love you so much that I'm letting you go to fly free. So flap those wings, brother mine, and don't stop 'till you can't flap them any more. Only then can you rest and close your eyes. Do you understand me?"

The spiky head under his arm nodded. He noted to himself, rather irrelevantly, that his brother's mop was beginning to flatten out, if that was at all possible for a Saiyan. Perhaps his mother's genes would win out after all. "Good," he said out loud. "Go, then, and find Mom and Dad. They're waiting for you."

He pushed the still crying Goten away from him, directed him instead to the bit of a light that Goten had been striving for originally. Goten stumbled towards it, haltingly, but to his credit, he didn't ever look back.

He wouldn't have seen anything even if he had.

As he went, however, he did hear _something_, a faint flutter of words against his ears. He murmured something in response and strode on more confidently, his tears slowing at last in his newfound burst of certainty. His steps carried him ever more towards the yellowish light of consciousness and ever more away from the area his brother had occupied. Soon, even he faded out of sight, leaving behind only his words still lingering in the gray air:

"Goodbye to you, too, niisan."

:-:-:-:

**FINIS**

VIGILANTE ANGEL

:-:-:-:

A/n: Thus ends my great epic, **Vigilante Angel**. Oh, My God. Just in time for college, too! LOL.

Aline: And to think that wasn't even your original ending.

Yeah, actually. My original ending was actually a lot different. I'm glad I wrote it like this, though. Much more meaningful.

Aline: (Looks smug)

(Rolls eyes) Yes, dear muse, all the credit goes to you. As per usual. LOL.

Aline: Since this is my last chapter with you, SP, I'm going to treat any and all sarcastic witticisms on your part as if they were actually sincere.

My, how generous of you. I do believe I'll do the same. (Promptly begins ignoring her muse) Hmpf!

Thanks to **Lov3the3vil**, **lpgohanfanatic**, **Tiara Shin**, and **No1butjoe** for reviewing the last chapter, and to:

**Twin Tails Speed**,** adlex47**,dbzfan952, **Maireilla**,** Nahirta**,** SuperMysticWarrior**, gregory, **miroku-has-darkness**,** ExtrmEagle**,** Sun Knight**,Destruction-coming-your-way, Andrea, **Gohan'slittlebro47**,** Joou Himeko Dah**, **conlan0414863**, **ryuran123352**, **Dark Armies**, **darksupersaiyan**, **puff the magic dragon**, **Salazarfalcon **& SS2 Megami-sama (:P), Michelle, Chibi-Chan, amytherat, Kate, **MarshmellowDragon**, **reviewer not a writer**, Kat, Goku's stomach, **Phoenix aka Little Bird**, dfd, unkownapprentice, **Tellemicus Sundance**, Trust no-one but the moles, **writer321**, **Briememory** (HI!), dd, Sos, **SSJDarkPrince**, **Night-Owl123**, **duckmasta2020**, **SSJ3MysticGohan**, **random3434**, **Sakurako Minase**, MadnessLover, **Fairy of Speed **(where'd you go?), **New Dye** & Choice B, **Neptunes Tsunami**, **Hiaburi**, Ali, **Skadu**, **SeikoTuNeR**, tiger 889, reviewer, **Azari Kaiya Son**, Axelalx, **ssj-vash**, hi, Viky, Me!!!, Legend, Shaye, **gaul1**, **Shea Loner** (hey!!!), **Clana621**, **simbarulz** (Hi Amber-chan!), **Wiggle-Chicken**, DBZ Fan, **Cesna Rose**, **Rambling Dragons**, B, **DemonDancing** (where the HFIL ARE you?!?!), SS, **JiaJing**, **Nooka **(where'd you go, mate?), Gohan's Kat (it's been FOREVER since you and Lexi updated! WHERE ARE YOU?!), **Mayleesa**, King Jasbon, **Angel35**, Joe, Concerned, K1K, Frying Pan of DOOM (OMG! I haven't heard from you in FOREVER!), Mine own name is mine, Dark Blue, hsb, That lil' ol' Blue Girl, FreakyPerson, dan, Max Krugman, bj, Krista, **Rarity88** (I haven't seen you around in a LONG time either), meeeeeeee, child of the shadow light, **Kokoro Angel**, kakkabrat, SSJ4-Kitty, CW, Mouse, BJ, v son saiyan, **Chrysoberyl**, **Silvertress**, **chaosblizzard**, SSJ5 Tigger, unknown soldieress, madA505, **Gosen the Saiya-Jin**, **fyreblazen**, Dan, A Random Faqn, and **forgotten dead soul** for reviewing the previous chapters!

I hope I see you guys and gals around again! (Waves)

For the last time on **Vigilante Angel**, this is farewell, from

**TheShadowPanther** and Aline, from **AASN**

**AASN; **Writing is what we do for you at **AASN**. Enjoy.

_Updated 06.29.07_

(Now just don't kill me! (Cowers))


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